


Shotgun

by saiikavon



Category: Ben 10 Series
Genre: Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-03-20
Updated: 2013-08-01
Packaged: 2017-12-05 21:49:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 27
Words: 57,551
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/728274
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/saiikavon/pseuds/saiikavon
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A collection of Ben 10 drabbles for the Kevin/Ben pairing. Each chapter has a set of 10 drabbles.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Promise

**Author's Note:**

> These came from an old Bevin community on lj. I just started writing general ones for a while, until it became kind of an episodic thing and I was writing whole sets. I started posting them in sets of 10 like this on ff.net a few years ago, and now they're here. There are currently over 200 of these drabbles, so there are plenty to enjoy.
> 
> Thank you for listening. ^^

**Promise**  
Kevin was bad at making promises, but he did make one that he intended to keep. He’d never told anyone about it, not even to the person he made it to. He’d rather die than say it out loud to Ben Tennyson. But he made the promise just the same, and every time he looked at Ben, he made it again.

So when Gwen asked him why he hadn’t asked her out, it was kind of awkward. He couldn’t exactly say, “No, I can’t, because I promised your cousin that he was my one and only. Oh, you can’t ask him about it, though. I haven’t told him yet.”

So, like an idiot, he said, “Don’t push me.”

Now Ben teases him about it.

One day he’ll make that promise out loud just to see Ben’s expression.

 

**Keeping Quiet**  
 _I wish they’d give me a little more credit._ Gwen sighed and tried to refocus on her magazine. _Or at least they could be a little quieter._

“Nng…ow, Kevin! Not so rough.”

“Don’t be such a baby. You can handle it.”

Gwen groaned. _Oh, God…it starts._

“Hnn…ah…Kevin…”

Gwen buried her bright red face in her magazine.

“See? You like it.”

For God’s sake, she was ten feet from the car! She’d tried to give them some privacy when they started making goo-goo eyes at each other when they thought she wasn’t looking. But those two couldn’t keep a secret if the fate of the universe depended on it. Gwen was having a harder and harder time pretending that she had no idea what was going on.

_That’s it,_ she thought finally. _These two will have to learn to deal with my knowing._

She rapped on the back door window impatiently. All movement inside stopped.

“Listen up, you two. I am ten feet away from the car. If you can’t be quiet, I am going to establish a ‘no sex in the car’ rule in order to get some peace and quiet. Now keep it down!”

She walked away again to finish her magazine. Ten feet away, the car rocked quietly on its wheels.

 

**Irony**  
“Wow. Déjà vu.” Ben checked himself out in the mirror, spinning around, flipping his hair and fixing his skirt. Gwen’s skirt. But it was his skirt right now. Yeah.

“Tell me about it.” Gwen examined herself as well, cringing a little at the not-so-pleasant state of her teeth. “Do you ever brush?”

Ben shrugged. “Sometimes.”

From behind them, Kevin laughed. “This is better than the movies. I can’t believe you two actually switched bodies.”

Gwen turned around, hands on her hips. Which looked weird, considering they were actually…Ben’s…hips. “Laugh it up, Kevin. I’ll have us back to normal in no time.”

“Figures he’d find this funny,” Ben muttered.

“That’s cuz it _is_ funny.” Kevin smirked. So did Gwen. It didn’t look too uncharacteristic on Ben’s face.

“You know what else is funny, Kevin?” she asked, getting right in Kevin’s face. “You can finally ask me out.”

Ben laughed in Gwen’s voice.

 

**Asking For It**  
“Boy, you are askin’ for it!”

Kevin stared down the four arms look-alike. “I’m beggin’ for it! Who’s gonna give it to me?”

Ben raised his hand. “Um…I will.”

Gwen just stared at him. The kineceleran and the tetramand couldn’t quite figure out what expression to have and settled for “scandalized.”

Kevin shrugged. “It’s true. He will.”

No one knew what to say to that.

 

**Old Age**  
Kevin hated being old. He supposed it was his own fault, but he wanted it fixed. His back hurt, his legs hurt, his eyes hurt, and he couldn’t hear anything properly. And he thought he might have been getting senile, too. That was the worst part. Because before he knew it, he was practically telling Ben how he felt.

“You should have gone out with me when I was young and handsome,” he told the boy (whom he’d thought was going to drive…didn’t he say he was going to drive? Then why was he in the passenger seat?). To which Ben replied:

“You were too immature.”

Was it his imagination, or did Ben sound like Gwen all of a sudden?

No matter. He pressed on. “What about now?”

“Too old.”

He really needed to get young again. His hearing was just awful.

 

**Heartbreak**  
Gwen had strived for this day; playing matchmaker in the wings, pushing the two of them in the right direction until finally, they were together. She’d always known that Ben and Kevin were near and dear to each other’s hearts, so trying to hook them up just came naturally.

That didn’t mean it didn’t hurt to watch.

She really did like Kevin. Despite the things he’d done in the past, she knew that he was a well-meaning and sweet guy. And of course there was his “roguish charm.” He was so genuinely…Kevin. She’d wanted that. She’d fallen in love with that.

And apparently, Ben had, too. It couldn’t be helped. Gwen put family first.

So she endured the lovey-dovey eyes, the stolen kisses, the not-so-secret sex-romps in the car, and the unconscious, constant closeness that came with two people who were in love. And she tried to be happy for them.

 

**Gaydar**  
In the midst of experimentally pressing buttons, Ben was astonished to find out that the Omnitrix had a _gaydar_. At first he didn’t know why the damn thing was beeping and flashing with multicolored light. But it became kind of obvious once a mini satellite popped out of the face and pointed at him, and the familiar mechanical voice declared, _“Homosexual orientation detected.”_ His jaw dropped.

Kevin started to laugh. “That’s just great, Tennyson. The Omnitrix called you a homo.” He laughed until his sides hurt, until the mini satellite pointed at him.

_“Homosexual orientation detected.”_

Now it was Ben’s turn to laugh.

 

**Gaydar: Gwen’s Reaction**  
Gwen sighed. “Okay. So the Omnitrix has a gaydar. Which Kevin is convinced is broken.” She turned to her cousin. “Ben, are you _sure_ you didn’t press something weird to make it go out of control?”

“He must have!” Kevin shouted accusingly. “It keeps calling _me_ gay! Me!” He crossed his arms over his chest and pouted. “I’ll bet it just says that to everything.”

“I’m standing right here, Kevin,” Gwen stated calmly, holding up Ben’s wrist. “And it’s not calling me gay.” She sighed again. “Any way we can figure out if it’s broken or not?”

Ben scratched his head in thought. “Umm…I think so. Hold on a sec.” He walked over to Kevin, placed both hands firmly on the mutant’s shoulders, and kissed him squarely on the mouth.

Gwen turned the color of a tomato but for some reason couldn’t look away.

The mini satellite on the Omnitrix spun and beeped, and the mechanical voice repeated, _“Homosexual orientation detected. Homosexual orientation detected.”_ Finally, Ben drew away, and Kevin tried to follow Ben’s lips until he realized what he was doing and stepped back.

“This proves nothing!”

“No,” Gwen agreed, still blushing furiously; and she pointed at Kevin’s crotch. “But that does.”

Ben examined the Omnitrix. “Now, if I can just figure out how to shut it off, we can finish this.”

Gwen hid her face and groaned.

 

**Dying Words**  
This Xenocyte had always had the same goal as its Kin. Attach to a human life form, live off it, and work with the rest of the Kin to further the populace. This Xenocyte always expected to do great things with its new host.

But this one’s host would not move. He just talked.

Of course the rest of the Kin counted this one as useless, since all it could do was take energy from its host and do nothing to expend it. Because the host refused to move, and so both body and Xenocyte were slowly shutting down. It wasn’t fair.

What else could this one do but listen to its host’s dying words?

He talked about stealing what he wanted, when he wanted; whether it happened to be car parts or alien tech, or even a few hearts with his “roguish charm.” He talked about all the things he’d learned in the Null Void (which probably would have been a bad idea if this one could have relayed any of the information to its Kin).

But the host talked more about a human called Ben Tennyson than anything else. About the fire in his green eyes when he got angry. About the slight sway of his hips when he walked. This one didn’t know much about human relationships, but weren’t human males supposed to go after human females?

Every word about the Tennyson boy stood out prominently to the Xenocyte. This one soon found itself forgetting its own goals and wondering what the goals of humans were. Were they the not ultimately the same as the Kin’s?

“You…wanted…to be with…the Tennyson…human.”

“Yes.”

“You…could have lived…yet…we lie here…because…you love…him?”

“Yes.”

As soon as that understanding was made, this one felt the last of its host’s strength fade away.

This one did not understand human emotions. But it now had an idea what sadness was like.

 

**Dying Words: This One’s Message**  
“Something’s not right.”

Ben agreed. “It’s just…lying there.” He frowned. “This can’t be Kevin…can it?”

_“Genetic code splicing error. Should we attempt to repair?”_

“I guess it’s the only choice we have.” Ben glanced at the blinking Omnitrix. “If this thing is Kevin, then there’s no way we can leave him like this.” He hoped it wasn’t Kevin. “All right. I’m going in.”

He’d been through this before with Ken. But he hadn’t been this terrified. Ken had still been moving around. And he could still see that it was Ken in there.

This time, he wasn’t so confident in what he was doing as he reached for the slimy alien flesh.

“You are…Ben Tennyson.”

Ben recoiled. This was definitely new.

“Kevin?”

“He is in here, yes,” the voice replied. “But I am not him.”

“Then…you’re the alien? How do you know my name?”

“The black-haired boy…Kevin…he has said a lot about you.” The voice of the creature sounded faintly curious. “I had wondered if I would ever get to meet you.” The Xenocyte paused, and Ben felt that he had to stay silent too. “He loved you dearly.”

“He…did?” Something else about that was astonishing. “Wait…why are you using past tense?”

“He used up the last of his energy, and expired. Although I suppose I could…wait just a moment. I would like to try something, if I may.”

“Wait…what are you going to try?”

“Wait just a moment.”

Ben waited with a heart full of apprehension. A moment passed, and he heard nothing from the alien. He reached out once more, but a barrage of tentacles began to coil around his wrist. There was a second of blackness, and then he found himself in the real world again, a lifeless Xenocyte curled in his palm.

_It…gave his energy back…_

“Kevin!” Ben looked up in time to see Gwen throw her arms around Kevin.

Kevin’s eyes shot right to Ben.

Ben smiled. “Hey. Missed you.”

The older boy smiled, too.


	2. Distraction

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set 2.

**Distraction**  
You’d think fighting DNAliens would be the trio’s biggest problem, but there was something that Ben, Kevin and Gwen ran into more frequently than that. So frequently that it was almost becoming a routine.

Damn Mac trucks.

Kevin would shout, “I’ve got the driver!” Gwen would keep the civilians out of harm’s way. Ben handled the damages.

Then there was the time when the truck that crashed…didn’t have a driver. By some miracle, the guy had managed to get out about a half a mile after the thing went out of control. So there was nothing for Kevin to do. The Omnitrix was recharging, so there was no way Ben could possibly have done anything about the burning pile of metal. Gwen had to take care of damage control.

That left Kevin and Ben to the civilians. They had to think of something to keep the people’s eyes off the wreckage. Sounds pretty hard, right?

Well…let’s just say that two boys making out in the middle of the street makes a very good distraction.

 

 **Money**  
Finally, Gwen had found something Kevin would respond to.

“You tell him, and this is all yours,” she told the mutant, waving the 100-dollar bill in his face.

“You really want me to tell him, don’t you?” Kevin sighed. “All right. You got me.” He reached out for the money. “I’ll tell him tomorrow.”

Gwen hastily snatched the money back. “Tell him now and I’ll double it.”

Kevin thought about this for a moment. It was a short moment. “Triple it and I’ll throw in a kiss.”

“Deal. Now go.”

At the end of the day, Kevin earned 300 dollars and a boyfriend.

Gwen decided that her cousin’s happiness was definitely worth the money.

 

 **Paradox’s Mission**  
If the fate of the world didn’t depend on it, he wouldn’t be doing it. Hell, he was considering ditching the whole thing anyway for the sheer awkwardness of it all, world be damned. Just how did a one-hundred-thousand-year-old time-traveler convince a fifteen-year-old boy that he was in love? And with _another_ boy?

Well, it didn’t hurt to start with the basics.

“The machine runs on doubt and, quite critically in your case, _denial_. I can’t ask you to help me destroy it while your heart is in such turmoil. It will be indestructible, even for that giant Humongousaur of yours.”

Ben made a face. “I’m not in love with Kevin.”

Paradox sighed. This was infuriating. And the boy had been so smart in their first meeting. And even smarter in their second. Or was it the fourth? He never could keep track.

“My boy, this is most certainly _not_ the time to be denying your sexuality. Either you admit it and help me save the world, or you don’t and doom the entire human race to a very early and very horrifying death.

Ben thought about it. Paradox wished he could be more patient. If he wanted to, he could skip the next few seconds he knew Ben would be taking to consider his feelings. But that would just be rude.

“I’m in a bit of a hurry, Ben.” That little quip would do nicely.

Ben sighed. “All right. So…I am in love with Kevin.” He frowned. “I guess I just never wanted to see it…since he likes Gwen and all…” He turned to face Paradox, eyes determined now. Much better. “All right. Let’s go save the world.”

Paradox smiled in relief. “Splendid. After you.”

 

 **First Time**  
Ben’s mind was racing. “What…did we just do?”

Kevin shrugged. “We had sex.”

“In my _parents’ bed_.” Ben sat up abruptly, clutching his hair.

Kevin sat up too; leisurely, comfortably stretching. “Yup. They have some nice comforters.” Ben stared at him incredulously.

“How can you be so calm about this?”

Kevin shrugged. “It’s just sex. It doesn’t mean anything.”

Ben grabbed the comforter and covered his naked chest, somehow scandalized by Kevin’s words. “Doesn’t mean anything? What kind of bullshit is that? Of course it means something! It…!” He stopped, unsure of what he was about to say. His eyes fell to the sheets. “Well, it…it’s supposed to mean something.”

That caught Kevin’s attention. He stared at Ben curiously. “Wait a minute…don’t tell me you’re a virgin.”

“I was.”

“Damn.” Kevin chuckled a little. “Hey, all right, I got to deflower Ben Tennyson.” He chuckled again.

“It’s not funny, Kevin!” Ben was pouting. It was a really childish gesture, but it nonetheless portrayed how Ben really felt. He was hurt. Kevin leaned over and took Ben’s chin in his hand and smiled at those sad eyes.

“Hey, I’m sorry. How about you give me one more chance?” He placed a gentle kiss on Ben’s lips. “And this time it can mean whatever you want it to.”

Ben blinked at him shyly. “Can it mean that you love me?”

Kevin chuckled again. “Too easy,” he replied. Ben grinned.

He would count this one as their first time. It was so much better.

 

 **Puppy**  
Ben lifted the little black dog to his face and it licked his nose. He frowned at it.

“How did this happen?” he asked Gwen. Gwen took the dog into her arms and it wriggled a little in her grasp, whining unhappily.

“I guess whatever hit him was some kind of matter re-arranger,” she said. The dog continued to whine. “That doesn’t explain why he’s acting like this, though.”

Ben shrugged. “Maybe the thing altered his mood, too. We’d better find a way to reverse it, quick.”

Gwen cocked her head a little, petting the squirming puppy. “Oh, I don’t think we need to reverse it that fast. He’s kind of cute like this. Aren’t you Kevin? Who’s a good puppy?” she cooed at him, making Ben roll his eyes. “Come on, Ben. You know he’s cute.”

Kevin gave Ben his best puppy eyes. Which turned out to be really easy since he was, you know, a puppy. Ben smiled and scratched the dog behind the ears.

“Well, all right. I can admit it. I kind of do like him better this way.”

Kevin barked.

Gwen handed the wriggling dog over to Ben. “Here. He seems to like you better right now.” True to her words, the dog settled down the minute he was in Ben’s arms. The fluffy black tail wagged happily.

“Geez. Why can’t you treat me like this when you’re human?”

Kevin licked his chin.

 

 **All the Details**  
Unloading tools from Kevin’s car, as always, Raff felt compelled to start conversation. Business transactions were rather boring sometimes. Boring enough to get Raff into the one conversation sure to scar him for millennia. “So, ever find that Tennyson kid?” he asked, with a slight grimace. He always regretted asking, because he knew what kind of answer he was going to get. But his curiosity never failed to get the better of him.

Kevin shook his head, but he didn’t look discouraged. He was smirking. “Not yet. But I’ll hook ‘im, you’ll see.” The alien grimaced again.

“I’m certain.” They finished unloading a good portion of the supplies and then Raff had to rest. The equipment was heavy, and his species was built for heavy thinking, not heavy lifting.

“I swear…” Kevin continued, his eyes taking on that familiar hazy quality, “…every time I think about seeing him again…I can’t help myself. I think about touching him…his skin…being inside him…”

Raff tried not to show his discomfort. Kevin was off in Ben-land again. He should be used to it by now. “Yes, you’ve told me this before.”

“You understand, right?” Kevin leaned against the car, staring up at the night sky. “There’s so much I wanna do to ‘im; and do with him. You ever felt that? Like you just wanted a chance to be a part of something? Of someone?”

Raff cast his eyes over Kevin’s face. The boy truly was hopeless. “I have never felt that.” He paused. “Let’s get back to work.”

Kevin sighed. “Right, right…”

But even as they continued working, Raff knew what Kevin was thinking. He could see it in Kevin’s mind. The pictures of two flushed and sweating bodies intertwined…of dark bruises on slender hips…Kevin’s broad chest rubbing up against a smaller body…and the desperate, loving kisses raining down on cheeks, lips, neck; everywhere. Kevin left no part of the other boy’s body untouched.

The images were choppy, disconnected, and faded. That’s because they weren’t real. Only daydreams that Kevin had obviously entertained many times. He had no memories such as this with the boy he so obviously loved.

Oftentimes, Raff wished he could be spared of the details. Other times, he wished in vain that those fading daydreams could turn into bright, vivid memories.

 

 **All the Details: Reunited**  
“Raff, Gwen Tennyson.”

Only Raff could have caught the slight tension in Kevin’s voice at the name. He knew the boy far too well.

“Tennyson?” He cocked his head. The girl was a Tennyson, but she was not _the_ Tennyson. So the boy next to her must have been…

“Yeah.” Kevin lightly tossed his head in the direction of the other boy. “That’s him there.”

Raff glided up to the young boy, his eyes narrowing as he attempted to assess the situation completely. It seemed Kevin had not fulfilled what he wished with this boy. And the only reason for that must have been the girl.

Now he understood.

“I used to talk about what I’d do to you,” Kevin told the Tennyson boy noncommittally.

“Right.” Ben looked suspicious. “Back when you were a crook.”

Oh, this was funny. The poor boy obviously had no idea what Kevin wanted from him.

Right. The mission. They continued on with that business. Tearing his mind away from distraction, Raff explained everything about the princess’s kidnapping and 7-7.

“He’s the same race as 6-6, but far more dangerous,” he told the group. The girl spoke up.

“Right. 11 more dangerous.” Her tone was dull and sarcastic. Raff stared her down.

Damn. He didn’t like her.

_‘My sympathies, Kevin,’_ he thought. He would have a lot of trouble getting what he wanted with _this_ bundle of sunshine following him around.

This mission was going to be fun. Or painful.

 

 **Deliberating**  
“I think that love is a wonderful thing, and must be pursued,” Serena purred happily. “If it is right in front of you, Ben, then you must go for it.”

“Hmph! I disagree! If that bastard isn’t going to make a move, why should Ben?” Bellicus retorted angrily.

This wasn’t helping. Ben already knew they were useless when it came to decision-making. Why would he ask them to help him solve his little Kevin issue?

“Guys, that’s not the problem here,” he said exasperatedly. “It’s not _about_ that. The problem is whether I love him at all.”

Bellicus made a face that was usually involved when he felt he heard something stupid. “Well, of course you do! If you didn’t, we wouldn’t be discussing it!”

“I agree, dear,” Serena said lightly. “What is in your heart cannot be denied.”

Ben blinked. “Wow. You guys actually agreed on something.”

“Even we can agree once in a while,” Bellicus grumbled.

Serena perked up even more, if that was possible. “Now, then, _I_ move that young Ben should act upon his love for Kevin.”

“Hmph!” Bellicus grunted again. Ben smiled amusedly.

“Well…all right,” he said. “I second.”

Bellicus nodded. “Motion passed.”

 

 **Shotgun**  
Those who know Kevin Levin well often say that he treats his heart the way he treats his car. This is true. He doesn’t let just anyone in, and even when he does, he doesn’t usually like them to stay very long. He only drives it where he feels like, never where anyone else wants him to take it. If it breaks, he fixes it himself.

There is one difference between his car and his heart, however. In his heart, Ben’s always riding shotgun.

 

 **Proud Mom**  
Bonnie Levin turned the Plumber’s Badge over in her hands, her heart swelling with pride. She looked over at her only son. He was looking down at the floor. Obviously waiting for her reaction.

She smiled. “I’m so proud of you, Kevin. A Plumber now, just like your father.” Kevin blushed.

“Yeah. Pretty cool, huh?”

“Very.” She handed the badge back to her son, and he held onto it like it was the most precious thing in the world.

Now, there was one more thing Bonne had to know. “And…what about Ben Tennyson?” Her son froze and turned even redder. “Is he proud of you, too?”

Kevin shuffled his feet. “Yeah…I guess so. He did look pretty happy.”

“Well, good. You should keep him that way.” Bonnie tilted her head, a teasing quality spreading over her smile. “Five years ago you couldn’t keep yourself from making his life a living Hell.”

Kevin grinned cheekily. “Yeah, you know what they say about kids picking on the person they love.”

“You always were one to take things too far.” She paused. “Promise me one thing, Kevin.”

“What’s that?”

“This new… _clean_ path you’re taking…take it all the way to the end.”

Kevin smiled. “All right. I promise.


	3. The Highbreed Didn't Come

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set 3. Featuring mpreg!Ben. Because of that one episode where he was pregnant.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you're wondering what "The Highbreed Didn't Come" is referring to, it refers to the episode in which Gwen and Kevin almost kiss, but are interrupted by a Highbreed smashing through the wall. I chose to forgo the Highbreed and interrupted the kiss with something that personally satisfied me instead.

**The Highbreed Didn’t Come**  
Gwen leaned forward. Kevin seemed to be obliging. Just this once, maybe, just this once…

“Gwen, I’m sorry, I can’t.” Kevin pulled back. “I…I wanted to, but…”

“No, it’s okay, Kevin,” Gwen sighed. “I’m the one who’s sorry. I shouldn’t have done that, knowing how you feel…”

Kevin looked at her. His eyes, if possible, had more hurt in them than hers did. “A lot of times I wish I could stop chasing after Ben. You’re my best friend, and I don’t want to lose you anymore than I want to lose him.”

Gwen sighed. “You won’t lose me, Kevin. I promise.”

_‘But I’m afraid I might lose you.’_

 

 **Sleeping Beauty**  
“You sure he’ll be okay? He’s not waking up.” Kevin was frowning. Gwen rolled her eyes.

“Is he…always like this?” the Magister asked, glancing over at Gwen.

“About Ben? Usually.”

“Hey, if I kissed him right now, d’you think he’d wake up?” Kevin chuckled a little. His face hovered over Ben’s. “He’s like Sleeping Beauty.”

Gwen sighed. The Magister looked confused, and a little green…well, greener than usual.

“I don’t understand,” he said. “Aren’t human males supposed to go after females?”

Gwen shook her head. “Not always. And when Ben is around, for Kevin, girls are not an option.”

“Smoothie…” Ben mumbled. Kevin’s face was inches from Ben’s, now.

“Oh, I’ll show you a smoothie…”

The Magister scratched his head. “All right, so he’s after Ben. What does Ben think about all this?”

Gwen smirked. “He doesn’t know.”

“Well…why not?”

Ben stirred and his eyes began to open. He was waking up.

“Oh, shit!” Kevin jumped back, scrambling to his feet and far away from Ben as the other boy woke up. Gwen fixed the Magister with a knowing look.

“Because Kevin’s a coward.”

 

 **Be Afraid, Very Afraid**  
“Oi, frog-man. Can I have a private word with Mike here before you leave?”

Everybody looked at Kevin. Then they looked at each other. Kevin took this as a yes and swung his arm around Mike’s shoulders, leading him away from the others.

“This should only take a second,” he told them.

Then he faced Mike.

“Y’know, man, bad things happen to people that try to hurt the love of my life.”

Mike scoffed. “I’m not afraid of you, Levin. And in case you hadn’t noticed, I never touched Gwen this time. So you can just run back to your little group and—”

“Ohhh, I wasn’t talking about Gwen.” Kevin smirked. Mike looked confused. “See, if you thought I was pissed about what you did to Gwen…well, let’s just say that messing with Ben…gets an even uglier reaction. You can understand that, right?”

As shocked as he was about this, Mike still sneered at Kevin. “You can’t do anything to me!”

“It’s not about what I, personally, can do to you. It’s about what I can _have done_ to you.” Mike looked startled, now. Kevin patted him on the shoulder. “I’ve got connections, man. Even where you’re headed.”

He led Mike back to the Magister, the poor bastard frozen in fear.

 

 **Looking Good**  
Kevin straightened his bowtie for the third time. It was really more about comfort than about the look of it. Having the thing around his neck just didn’t feel right.

Although it had been pretty cute having Ben tie it right for him.

“Do I have to go to this dance?” he whined just as Ben came back in with another jar of pickles.

Munching on one, Ben replied, “You do if you want to keep our cover. Which, by the way, was your idea.”

Kevin straightened the bowtie. Again. “Excuse me for not wanting Gwen to kill me for taking your virginity.”

“Oh, right, because pretending to have a crush on her won’t make her want to kill you at all.” Ben smirked.

“Look, I just want to get to the dance, indulge her a little, and then get out. Can you try to be a little supportive?”

“I am being supportive!” Ben countered. “And don’t yell at me!”

Kevin sighed. “Fine. Good luck kiss?”

Ben smiled and stood up on tip-toes to kiss Kevin. Kevin grimaced as he pulled back.

“You taste like pickles.”

Ben glanced down at the pickle jar in his hand. “Oh. Sorry.”

“Well…” Kevin sighed again. “I better go out and get that…what was it…corsage?” He began to head out the door. “I’ll find you later.”

“Right. Oh, and, Kevin?”

Kevin turned around. “Yeah?”

Ben grinned. “You look good.”

 

 **Worry**  
Gwen was silent for the whole car ride. She pretended that it was because she was worried about Ben. Not that she wasn’t, but…

Kevin was entirely focused on getting to where Ben was. He’d already completely forgotten about the dance that they were missing. And that was what was worrying Gwen right now.

Ben had tied his bowtie for him, told him Gwen’s favorite flower, and given him advice. Not to mention that he’d lent Kevin the tux. Those things by themselves didn’t bother Gwen, but the way Kevin talked about them did. He’d lit up so happily telling her the things that Ben did for him.

No matter what, Ben was always the first thing on his mind.

“We’re almost there. Only a matter of time before we find Ben.”

Gwen didn’t reply.

_‘Would you rather have been with him tonight…instead of me?’_

 

 **Birth Control**  
After dropping Gwen off, there was one thing Kevin had to do.

He knew Ben would be pacing the floor right now, agonizing over all the little details.

“Where’re you going? Your house is the other way.”

Kevin really didn’t want to know how Gwen knew that. “Yeah, I know. I’m just goin’ to, uh…check on Ben.”

Gwen rolled her eyes. “Don’t tease him too much.”

_‘Right…tease him…’_ Kevin only smirked in response. Then he went to Ben’s house where, as he’d thought, the younger boy was pacing the floor.

That changed as soon as Kevin walked through the door, however.

“Kevin! I blame you!”

Yeah, he’d expected that. “Hey, what makes you think this is all my fault?”

“Who’s fault is it, then? Because there’s only one way to make babies, Kevin!”

“All right, all right.” Kevin sat down on the bed. “I’m sorry. At least I managed to convince Gwen and Julie that all of those aliens lay eggs no matter what, right?”

“I guess so.” Ben sighed, pouting. “We just…have to be extra careful from now on. Condoms by themselves aren’t doing it.” Then, completely serious, he added, “I’ll have to start taking birth control pills.”

Kevin let out a huge snort of laughter. Ben gave him a disapproving glare.

“Birth control pills? Are you serious?”

“I mean it, Levin. I will _not_ be going through this every year.”

Kevin shrugged. “Fine. I’ll go buy some before I go home.” He stood up. “Far as the drugstore guy knows, I’m dating Gwen, anyway.”

Ben batted his eyelashes. “Thanks, _honey_.”

Kevin rolled his eyes. “You’re welcome, _dear_.”

He shut the door behind him.

 

 **Mommy and Daddy**  
Ben was sixteen years old. He was starting to get a better handle on his powers, but there was one thing he hadn’t gotten a handle on yet.

Big Chill’s little egg-laying ritual.

Granted, he hadn’t actually had any opportunity to try and control it. According to Kevin, Necrofriggians laid eggs only once a year.

But at least he didn’t black out anymore. He figured that was because he didn’t try to fight Big Chill’s habits like he had last year. But it was still nice to know what was going on.

Plus, he got to do more relaxing this time around. Why? Well, because Kevin was helping out, of course.

“You need a man around the house…er…nest,” Kevin had said, incurring the wrath of a mood-swinging Ben. He quickly declared that he had been joking, of course.

Now he was helping Ben pile huge chunks of metal onto the chosen nesting ground. Big Chill seemed to appreciate the help, and readily accepted Kevin as a…well, father-figure.

Gwen and Julie on the other hand…not so much.

The girls couldn’t seem to figure out why Ben was attacking them and not Kevin. Kevin remained, as far as they knew, just as clueless.

Kevin wiped some sweat from his brow. “Nest’s all covered up. When are these things gonna hatch, anyway?”

Ben shrugged. In Big Chill’s truly fitting voice he answered, “Not a clue.”

They waited.

A few hours later, the eggs hatched. Big Chill morphed back into Ben, and he and Kevin watched the little aliens fly off together.

“Aww, look at them. Our little freaks of nature,” Kevin chuckled, putting an arm around Ben. Ben smiled, too.

“Yeah. They are pretty cute.” He smirked at Kevin. “And you’re not such a bad dad.”

“I’m an even better husband.” Kevin grinned and gave Ben a kiss. “What d’you say ‘wife’? Wanna go home and make more alien babies?”

Ben laughed and returned the kiss. “Yeah, sure. Why not?”

Needless to say, they’d be back again next year.

 

 **Taking After Daddy**  
Gwen stared in disbelief at the little alien. It had looked just like all of its other brothers and sisters when it hatched.

Kevin was sweating. Ben was turning bright red and trying very hard to hide his face.

You see, the second that the mini-Necrofriggian touched the pile of metal that was its nest, its entire body became covered in the substance.

Gwen turned around, glaring particularly at Kevin.

“They seem to take after a certain someone, _don’t_ they, Kevin?”

Kevin grinned sheepishly. “Uh, heheh…that’s my boy…?”

Ben groaned.

The little baby alien flew away, its metal coating glinting in the starlight.

 **Birth Control: Found Out**  
It was intervention time.

Gwen placed a bottle of pills on the table. “I need you to explain this.”

Ben stared at the table. The label on the bottle clearly indicated that they were birth control pills. He looked up at Gwen again.

“Uh…I can explain that.”

Gwen’s expression deadpanned. “That’s…kind of what I just said, Ben.”

Ben sheepishly scratched the back of his head. “Um…right, yeah. Well, you see…” He paused. “How did you find these, anyway?”

Gwen sighed. “Ben, don’t change the subject!”

“Sorry, sorry!” Ben waved his hands around. “I just thought it might…y’know, stop Big Chill from having more alien babies. I’d rather not go through that again.” He folded his arms over his chest and pouted. “But all they’re doing is giving me breasts.”

Gwen blinked in surprise. “Excuse me?”

“Oh, that reminds me!” Ben lit up at once, having just remembering something obviously important. “Gwen, can I borrow a couple of your bras?”

Gwen just stared at him.

 

 **Having My Baby**  
Kevin blamed this whole thing on conscious knowledge. A clueless Ben equals only a _slightly_ off-scale Ben. A Ben with conscious knowledge of everything going on equals a mood-swinging, pickle-gorging, _completely_ off-scale Ben.

“Keviiin, I’m out of pickles! And where’s that ice cream I asked for an hour ago?”

Kevin groaned. “Gwen’s gone to get that! And how come you want to eat pickles with ice cream, anyway?”

Ben came into the room, then, holding an empty pickle jar and frowning. “I don’t know! Being pregnant is weird!” He paused. “Am I actually pregnant? Because technically Big Chill is the one laying eggs…” He paused again. And then glared at Kevin. “And I’m still out of pickles!”

Kevin shot up out of his seat. “Okay, okay! I’ll go get your pickles!” He started to head for the door. Of course, he couldn’t resist throwing out a final, “Should I buy some Midol, too?”

Ben threw the pickle jar at him.

Kevin left quickly.


	4. My Babies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set 4.

**My Babies**  
Ben and Kevin were cuddled up together on the metal nest, watching all their babies fly off for the sixth year in a row. Their delicate little wings made dusty trails in the air. The two proud parents watched them until the last baby Necrofriggian had flown off into space.

Ben sighed.

Kevin glanced down at him worriedly. “What is it?”

“It’s nothing.” Ben paused as Kevin stared at him suspiciously. “Well…it’s just that…this is the sixth time we’ve watched our babies fly away, and…I’m kind of sad.” He leaned against Kevin. “I wish some of them would come back.”

“You know they can’t survive in this climate right now.”

Ben frowned. “I know.” He sighed again. “I still miss them.”

As if on cue, in the distant a fluttering sound went through the breeze. Ben and Kevin looked up in astonishment to see that two mini aliens were flying back towards them.

Except…they were beginning to look less like aliens the closer they got.

One was a little bigger than the other, and so that transformed first. Soon it turned into what looked like a two-year-old human being. The littler one transformed next, looking very much like a baby that had just learned to walk. They floated gently down into the arms of their parents.

The smaller one looked like Ben. The bigger one looked like Kevin.

“Well, what d’ya know? A couple of ‘em came back.” Kevin smiled at Ben, who still looked at a loss for words.

“I can’t believe this…” he breathed.

Kevin gave Ben a sweet kiss, and gazed lovingly down at the two babies with him. “So…what are we namin’ ‘em?”

Ben smiled and pointed to each one, whispering their names. “Ken,” he said, pointing to the smaller one, “and Devlin,” he finished, pointing to the bigger one. “What do you think?”

Kevin kissed Ben again. “Perfect.”

 

**The Evil Twin**  
Albedo paced in his cell, thinking of one thing, and one thing only: a human being called Kevin Levin. That human being was all he had been thinking about for the past two weeks.

That, and…chili fries, of course.

Leaning against the doorframe of his cell, once again Albedo made his plea. “I need to speak to Ben Tennyson. Please.”

“I’m here, Albedo.”

Albedo jumped up in surprise. He had gone days without hearing an answer like that. He had begun to doubt he ever would.

“Ben Tennyson!”

“What is it you wanted to speak to me about, Albedo?”

Albedo paused, leaning against the doorframe once more and beginning to sweat, now, out of anticipation. “Tell me…that boy I met. The one called…Kevin…he…the moment I looked at him, my human’s heart began to beat faster. And now…he does not leave my thoughts. And…I feel…”

“Aroused?” Albedo could truly _hear_ the smirk that Ben Tennyson had behind the door.

“Is that what it is? So simple a feeling…cannot explain away…”

“The whole of it,” Ben interrupted, “is love. You’re in love with him. And you’re in love with him because I am in love with him.”

There was silence between the two. Albedo slid down to the floor.

“Love. I’m in love with a human. And a human male, no less!” His fist pounded on the door. He was angry.

“You don’t have to worry about it, really,” Ben told him, though the tone in his voice was far from reassuring.

Albedo scoffed. “And why is that?”

There was more silence for a moment.

Ben Tennyson’s voice was dark when he spoke again. “Because I will _never_ let you have him.” Albedo shuddered. “He. Is. _Mine_.”

Albedo backed away from the door.

“Was that all you wanted to know?”

Albedo swallowed. “Y-yes.”

He could hear the smirk again. He knew it was there. “Good night, then.”

He didn’t hear from Ben Tennyson again after that.

 

**Jealous**  
Ben pouted, annoyed at the smug look Kevin was giving him.

“You know, you’re really ruining my good mood.”

Kevin patted an open space on the bed that he was lounging on. “I’m sorry. Come over here and I’ll make it better.”

“Go to Hell.”

Now it was Kevin’s turn to pout, though it was only there to mock Ben’s. “Aww, now is that any way to treat your boyfriend, who loves and adores you and would never make fun of you for being jealous of your cousin?”

Ben thrust an accusatory finger at Kevin, then. “Aha! So you admit it!”

Kevin sat up and shrugged. “I just thought it was cute how you mentioned Cooper’s crush on Gwen solely for my benefit.”

Ben crossed his arms over his chest, pouting again. “Like I said, you’re ruining my good mood.”

“Ben…”

Ben glanced over. “What?”

Kevin held out his arms. “Come here. I wasn’t able to feel you up properly under Cooper’s little cloaking device.”

Ben scoffed. “You’re such a charmer.”

Kevin waved his arms towards himself, silently calling Ben closer. “Yeah, yeah, I get it, I’m no Casanova. Get over here.”

Ben hesitated, but eventually he sighed and made his way over to the bed, half-heartedly cuddling up to Kevin.

Kevin nuzzled Ben’s shoulder. “Hey, I’ve got it. I’ll set Gwen up on a date with Cooper. That’ll make up for my teasing you, won’t it?”

Ben considered this.

Then he kissed Kevin. “Yeah. That’ll do it.”

 

**Piggy-Back**  
It was too bad they were running from lasers and DNAlien goop. Because right now, underneath the focus on running away, Ben was thinking: _‘Wheeeee!’_

Riding on Kevin’s shoulders was so much fun.

He’d have to ask Kevin to do this again sometime.

 

**Crawling Up My Ass**  
Kevin resisted the urge to say something for as long as he could. But Ben was just asking for it.

“We don’t need DNAliens crawling up our butts,” come on, that was _begging_ for a response.

“Yeah, that’s right. Especially since I’ll be up your ass later.”

Everybody stopped. Ben turned the color of a Christmas tree light. Gwen gaped at Kevin.

“ _Kevin_!” Ben hissed. “Was that really _necessary_?!”

Kevin shrugged, walking past him. “You were kinda askin’ for it. Come on, guys, let’s keep moving.”

Gwen turned her stunned expression on Ben.

Ben chose to say nothing and stormed after Kevin.

He’d show _him_ “crawling up the ass”…

 

**Looks**  
Ben marveled at the connection he and Kevin had developed. Now they barely had to say a word to each other to know exactly what the other was thinking.

They shared a look as they snuck into the DNAlien’s base. The look was precautionary. _‘Be careful. I don’t want you to get hurt.’_

As Kevin burst through the door, just after Ben had rescued Cooper, shouting, “The cavalry is here!” they shared a look. Even through Gloop’s watery green eyes, Kevin could see the reassurance, just as Ben could see the concern in his.

_‘Did you need me?’_

_‘It’s okay. I’m fine.’_

They shared a look as they left the base, the cloaking device destroyed and Cooper safely in tow. The look was full of amusement, and mischief.

_‘We are never letting Gwen live this down.’_

They shared a look when Kevin dropped off Ben at home. A look they shared often.

_‘I love you.’_

 

**Ship**  
“Cute little guy.” Kevin patted the little mechamorph’s head, and it beeped happily at him. When he stood up again, Ship scooted a little ways up his leg, looking for more of the petting. Kevin chuckled.

Ship was hanging out at Ben’s house, playing some fetch, doing some tricks, all at Julie’s insistence that they needed to do some bonding. Ben didn’t know why he listened to her. But he was glad he did when Kevin was drawn to the house by the sight of Ben being chased by a giant Ship-turned-tank.

“I think he likes you.” Ben smiled, poorly concealing the deeper meaning behind that statement.

Kevin smirked. “Yeah? I like him, too.” He leaned down, ignoring the little creature scaling his leg. “I’m really into green.”

“I’m into black myself,” Ben replied. They leaned closer, despite the fairly public setting of Ben’s front yard. But they hadn’t shared a decent kiss in a while, so they didn’t care much.

However, Ship grew tired of being ignored. Humans were distracted far too easily, he decided. So to efficiently get their attention, he transformed into a spaceship and fired a laser at their feet. Ben and Kevin jumped apart immediately. Ship made a disgruntled noise at them.

Ben smiled sheepishly. “Sorry, Ship. We didn’t forget about you. We just haven’t been able to be alone for a while…”

Ship made the disgruntled noise again. He wasn’t buying it, obviously.

Kevin pulled Ben close to his body and pouted at the mechamorph. “Come on. I miss him too, you know. Be a sport.”

Ben stared at Kevin oddly. “What? ‘Be a sport’?”

Kevin shrugged. Ship considered it. Then he returned to normal form and scooted up to them, wagging his…tail. Ben and Kevin looked at each other.

“What d’you think he wants?” Kevin asked.

A few minutes later, all three of them were cuddling on Ben’s couch, watching a movie, and, in Ship’s case, enjoying a delightful petting.

Everybody wins.

 

**Shrieking**  
Julie and Gwen first started bonding during one of Ben’s soccer games. Gwen had noticed Julie scanning the crowd of spectators as she sat down. Then, she looked Gwen straight in the eye and asked her seriously, “Did you bring Kevin along?” When Gwen affirmed it, Julie got a wide grin on her face. Gwen didn’t ask about it until the game officially started.

Julie just shrugged. “I wanted to see him next to Ben after the game. I think they look cute together.”

“Really?” Gwen gasped. “Me too! I’ve been trying to hook them up for months!”

“No way! You _have_ to let me help you out!”

They both shrieked in excitement. From then on, their friendship blossomed.

They loved having Kevin drive them places, just for the chance to see how much they could get him to talk about Ben. Most of the time, he managed to side-step little things, like what Ben could have been doing at the moment or what he had for breakfast that morning; but sometimes the girls got lucky. In which case, they shrieked like the obsessed fangirls they were.

One time they went to the mall, the point of it was really just a chance for them to talk about all the coupley activity that had been going on between Ben and Kevin lately—where Ben and Kevin wouldn’t be able to hear them, of course. As always, they asked Kevin to drive them.

The shrieking was getting on his nerves. He said as much.

“No promises. Sometimes, we’re going to shriek,” Gwen replied.

“Like when you and Ben watch football,” Julie added cheerfully.

“We do _not shriek_!” Kevin…shrieked. He cleared his throat. “…shriek.”

The girls giggled.

Then they proceeded to talk about Ben—loudly, so Kevin could hear them.

Their favorite thing to hear: “Where is Tennyson anyway?”

Gwen and Julie looked at each other, grinning.

This was going to be a good day.

 

**Something Other Than the Car**  
Kevin’s car was very important to him. He’d spent a lot of time working on it; digging through spare parts, painting, all that. The car was his pride and joy.

It had an influence. The whole reason behind the paint job? See: Ben Tennyson.

So when Gwen asked, “Is your car all you think about?” Kevin didn’t quite know what to say. He couldn’t exactly say, “No, actually I think about Ben. A lot. I mean, really, a lot.”

So what did he say? Something stupid, as usual.

“No! Sometimes I think about food.”

 

**Confession**  
Ben shifted uncomfortably on his feet. His parents sat on the couch, a bit bright-eyed and wholly trusting. Because they knew about the whole fighting aliens thing, they had confidence that they could handle anything their son threw at them. Ben wasn’t so sure.

“Um…Mom, Dad…since we’re doing the whole ‘truth no matter how weird it sounds’ thing, I figure I should probably tell you something.” He shifted again. “Only, I want this to be between us, okay? No telling Gwen, or Kevin.” He shuddered at the thought of Kevin finding this out. “ _Especially_ not Kevin.”

Carl put an arm around his wife and smiled. “All right, Ben. It’ll be our little secret.”

“Good.” Ben let out a deep breath. “Okay. So…Mom, Dad…I’m…kind of in love with Kevin.”

His parents looked at each other. Then his mom said, “Okay, sweetie. Your secret’s safe with us.”

Ben just stared at them. “Wait, that’s it?” His parents looked at each other again.

“Well…” his mother began, “I can’t say that we exactly approve, but…”

“…he obviously means the world to you,” his dad finished.

“Besides, you’re our son. We love you no matter what.” His mother smiled. “And…we kind of had a hunch that you liked him, anyway.”

Ben groaned. “Great. So I’m transparent about my feelings. Fantastic.”

“Don’t worry,” Sandra told him cheerfully. “Like we said, it’ll be our little secret.”

Ben smiled. “Thanks, guys.”

His parents were awesome.


	5. Cell Phone

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set 5. Contains one...sort of non-con Albedo/Ben drabble. That's the only one, though.

**Cell Phone**  
Gwen didn’t know why she was doing it. She told herself she was just bored and a little curious. Some people would call it suspicious. But for whatever reason, Gwen found herself scrolling down Kevin’s recent call list.

_Ben._

_Ben._

_Ben._

_Ben._

_Ben._

_Ben._

_Gwen._

_Ben._

_Gwen._

_John._

_Gwen._

_Ben._

_Ben._

_Ben._

She was frowning when Kevin slid into the car.

“You sure call Ben a lot,” she said. Startled, Kevin looked at her.

“You’re going through my calls?” He snatched his phone from her, irritated. “What the hell, Gwen?”

“You were taking a long time,” Gwen replied, not looking at him. “I was bored.”

“So you go through my phone. I can’t believe this.” Kevin grumbled to himself, pocketing his phone. He wasn’t looking at her either.

The air seemed to get thicker.

“He was the first one you called before…when you went to investigate that DNAlien facility.”

“Yeah, so?”

“So, why?” Gwen looked over at him. “Why him and not me? I thought—”

“—you thought wrong,” Kevin interrupted. “I don’t have much history with you, Gwen. Not enough for that.”

Gwen’s eyes, saddened, drifted down to her lap. “I see…” She paused. “But you have enough with him.”

“Five years worth,” Kevin replied. “And it’s a strong, solid history.”

“I see.”

Silence took over again.

Ben slid into the backseat about five minutes later.

“Hey, you two, what’s up?” His enthusiasm was met with zero response. “Guys?”

Kevin started up the car.

The drive was silent.

 

**The Ruffian**  
Ben knew it was inappropriate, but he couldn’t help it. There were just so many instances in that day where he wanted to jump Kevin on the spot.

As Humongousaur, it was easy to stave off that desire after hearing Kevin say, “Do yo’ thang,” in that sexy voice of his. He had other things to worry about, and besides, he wouldn’t want to crush poor Kevin. He was even okay after hearing his mom call Kevin a ruffian (which was just so cute that it made him _really_ want to have Kevin right then and there).

It was less easy when he was in normal form. Watching a wet Kevin climb up onto the dock made for a suddenly very uncomfortable pair of pants. Luckily, his parents didn’t seem to notice.

The sexy smirk as Kevin teased him didn’t help, of course. The older boy’s eyes pierced his and clearly said, _‘Later, I’ll have you all to myself.’_

“You’re right, Mom,” Ben said, “he’s a ruffian.”

He was grinning when he said it. _‘But he’s my ruffian,’_ he thought.

 

**Father-Son Bonding**  
Some fathers bonded with their sons through baseball, or cars, or the shooting range. But not Ben’s father.

He bonded with his son through alien fighting.

“Hey, Dad?”

“Yes, son?”

Ben, in Jetray form, fired a few blasts at a charging DNAlien. “Um…can I ask you a question?”

“Fire away, Ben,” Carl replied, doing some firing of his own from the bazooka.

“Right. Um…well—on your left, Dad!” Carl heeded his son’s warning and Ben continued, “Kevin’s…kind of asked me to check out an alien sighting with him…alone.”

“I see. And you’re worried—oh, no you don’t!” He swung the bazooka like a bat and managed to club another alien over the head. “—and you’re worried about what that means.”

Ben changed into Swampfire and began throwing fireballs at the DNAliens. The rays just weren’t cutting it. “I’m worried about what it means to him,” he admitted to his father. “I’m half afraid it means nothing and I’ll make a fool of myself in front of him and half afraid it means _something_ and he’ll expect me to do something about it!”

“Well, Ben, the best advice any father can give to his son is ‘just be yourself,’” Carl told him. “He’s stayed around you this long; I don’t think he’s going anywhere.” Wiping sweat from his brow, Carl slung the bazooka over his shoulder. Ben changed back into himself.

The two surveyed the scene. DNAliens lying in slime, completely knocked out, everywhere.

Carl smiled. “I think this was a successful outing, don’t you?”

Ben smiled, too. “Yeah. And thanks for the advice, Dad.”

“Anytime, son.”

 

**Cold Eyes**  
“I finally came for you, Ben Tennyson.”

How could eyes a fiery red send chills down his spine? They glittered at him, blood-stained icicles in a dark, imprisoning cave. This wasn’t the same Albedo he remembered.

He licked his dry lips and opened his mouth to speak, but his twisted counterpart interrupted. “Wondering where you are? I recently emptied a Forever Knights’ castle and transformed it into my very own dungeon. I thought it would be appropriate for our…reunion.”

_‘Dungeon?’_ Ben made a move to sit up and heard the clanking of chains around his feet. He was tethered to the floor. Suddenly Albedo had become much more threatening. “Why…why did you bring me here?”

Grinning like a child with a new toy, Albedo knelt down to Ben’s level, and without warning grabbed his face. “Why? I vowed revenge. For the shame you thrust upon me, you deserve the same.”

Ben struggled, attempting to wrench himself free of Albedo’s grasp. But the double had gotten stronger, or perhaps he had gotten weaker; but either way he could not get free. Albedo came closer, his eyes piercing Ben’s harshly, his breath rolling over Ben’s skin intrusively.

Ben’s hair stood on end as Albedo’s hands left his face and slid down the column of his throat. He shuddered. Albedo’s invasive fingers traveled lower, and though he was no longer being pulled forward, Ben could not seem to back away.

His body gave a violent jolt as one of those roaming hands reached his navel. The fingers crept past the waistband of his pants and teased the flesh there. Ben stared wide-eyed at Albedo, who leaned in closer still, his eyes glinting. He whispered in Ben’s ear…

“I plan to make you feel as _wretched_ in your own body as I do. Just as _filthy_. Just as _disgusting_. I’ll make you wish you could tear your own flesh apart, just to escape the vile sensation of being completely…helplessly… _human_.”

Ben remained silent, trembling, terrified. Albedo unexpectedly nipped his ear, causing his body to jolt again.

And then Albedo rose, his hands falling away from Ben’s shaking form, smirking.

Albedo’s eyes glinted again; cruel, cold. “I am glad we had this chat,” he said.

Then he left Ben alone, the image of blood-red ice fixed in his mind.

 

**Cold Hands**  
Playful, giggling like an idiot, Kevin placed his steel-covered hands on the back of Ben’s neck. The unsuspecting fifteen-year-old jumped about a foot in the air.

“Kevin! Not cool!”

“Correction: _very_ cool. Ice-cold,” Kevin replied cheekily, wiggling his fingers. Ben frowned at him, rubbing the back of his neck.

“Don’t be an ass. Why’d you sneak up on me like that, anyway?”

Kevin shrugged. “Just wanted to see you jump. You’re cute when you’re all flustered like that.”

Ben rolled his eyes. “Yeah, that’s a sure-fire way to my heart, you big doofus. Why don’t you just shove a snowball down my shirt?”

Kevin chuckled, and reached out, his still-cold hands gently cupping Ben’s face. Ben winced.

“Goddammit, you’re cold. You’re not kissing me like this.”

Without a word, Kevin dropped the steel covering and leaned down for his kiss.

Ben inwardly laughed.

Kevin’s hands were still cold.

 

**Cold Feet**  
Kevin paced the room. Gwen watched him in amusement. She’d never seen him so nervous. For the past forty-five minutes Kevin had been muttering to himself, running his fingers through his hair, biting his lip; all while wearing out the carpet.

He had paused several times in the midst of his pacing, though only to go through the same banter with Gwen every time.

“I can’t do this. I just can’t. I swear he only said yes because he felt sorry for me. I won’t go. I can’t do it.”

Gwen sighed. “Kevin, _really_ , I _know_ my cousin. He’s a nice guy but he’s not _that_ generous. He likes you. A lot. For _five years_ he’s liked you. _A lot_. Don’t quit on that now just because you’re nervous.”

“This date’s gonna be awful, and he’s never gonna want to see me again, ever. I can’t do this, Gwen. I suck at it.”

“You haven’t even tried it yet; don’t say that.” Gwen placed both hands on Kevin’s shoulders and looked him right in the eye. “Kevin, look at me. I want you to take a deep breath.” Kevin did so. “Relax.” Kevin attempted to. “Repeat after me: This date will go fine.”

Kevin made a face. “This date will go fine,” he grumbled.

“Ben likes me. I like Ben. There is nothing to worry about.”

“Ben likes me. I like Ben. There is nothing to worry about.” Kevin didn’t look very assured as he repeated it, though. He looked more like a petulant child that had been forced to apologize to somebody.

Gwen patted his shoulders. “There. Now, go on and pick him up. You’re already twenty minutes late; don’t make him wait.”

“Yeah, yeah…” Kevin grumbled all the way out the door. He still wasn’t convinced.

Gwen shook her head and picked up the phone, quickly dialing her cousin. “Ben? Yeah, he’s on his way. Don’t be nervous, the date will go fine.” She paused and sighed. “Okay, Ben, I want you to take a deep breath…”

 

**Cold Heart**  
Kevin Levin decided at eleven years old that he would never trust anyone. Not since Ben Tennyson betrayed him, turned him into a monster and then banished him to the Null Void. Since then, Kevin’s only trusted one person: himself. He didn’t need anyone, and no one would ever need him.

The Null Void still got lonely. And he often found himself wandering from place to place with a hollow feeling in his chest. A heavy weight.

It was one span of time, perhaps a week, after he’d finally shed his mutated form that he came across that old Galvan and a fire. He’d planned to pass the geezer without a word or a second glance, but the old man spoke up.

“You’re frozen to the bone, boy. Come here by the fire.” Strange words, really. The temperature in the Null Void remained neutral as usual; neither hot nor cold. He couldn’t understand why the old man would say such a thing. But he sat down anyway, curiosity getting the better of him.

“What d’you mean by that, old man?”

The Galvan spared him a glance, and then went back to staring at the fire. “I could feel the chill coming off you for miles. If I didn’t know any better, boy, I’d say you were made of ice.”

“You’re talkin’ nonsense, old man,” Kevin scoffed. “I’m not cold.”

“But something in you has frozen,” the old Galvan replied. Startled, Kevin stared at him. The old man smiled. “Ah, there we go. You understand, even if you don’t want to. You’ve shut your heart away. It can’t get any light, so it’s frozen.”

Kevin continued to stare at him. “How…how could you know that?”

“People are more transparent than they realize.” He poked at the fire, and the flames crackled. “Just takes an open mind to see what the heart reveals.” He looked at Kevin, seeming to ponder something for a moment. “But you’ll understand that later. For now, it’s your heart that needs to open up.”

Kevin glowered. “Why should it? I’ll only get betrayed again.”

“Not if you do what’s right. What’s necessary.” Jabbing the stick he’d been using to poke the fire at Kevin, the old Galvan continued authoritatively, “You need to find him again. And start admitting to yourself how you really feel.”

Startled again, this time Kevin rose to his feet. He was angry; an old wound was opening that he’d taken such care to close. “You don’t know how I feel!”

“I know you would have stolen the moon right out of the Earth sky for him, boy,” the old man said matter-of-factly. “And if it came down to it, you still would. Face it, boy, you couldn’t cram enough hate in that heart of yours to cover an inch of what you feel. It’s a lost cause. Give it up.”

Kevin stayed angry for several minutes while the old man, unconcerned, went back to prodding at the fire. But after those several minutes, he realized that it was time to let go. The old man was right.

He settled himself down by the fire. The heaviness was gone, and he could feel the warmth.

 

**I Thought I Lost You**  
This was it. He was going to die.

Left arm, broken. Vision, quickly blurring, due to far too much smoke inhalation. Omnitrix, recharging. At a time like this. When he really needed it. He was really going to die.

Ben stumbled through the wreckage of the burning factory, where Ben had ambushed a hive of DNAliens (granted, that wasn’t a smart idea, usually, but he hadn’t much choice. Kevin had disappeared weeks ago, and himself and Gwen had split up trying to find him).He’d gotten into a bit of a skirmish (translation: a full-on brawl, Humongousaur style, which explains the broken left arm) with the Highbreed leader. At some point, the Highbreed decided that the factory wasn’t worth the fight, and as a last maneuver, had the whole thing burned. The Omnitrix had chosen that time to clock out, leaving Ben in the midst of quickly piling rubble.

The fire spread to whatever fell, licks of flame latching on like monkeys jumping around in the trees. Ben was surrounded, losing oxygen as the fire drank it up, losing strength because of it, losing consciousness because the exhaustion was just too much.

He collapsed onto the ground, hopeless now. He was going to die.

“I don’t think so, Tennyson. You’re not dyin’ on me.”

Ben’s eyes flickered open and he craned his neck upward.

He was relieved. He wasn’t going to die.

One arm stretched out, reaching for his safety, for his steel-covered Kevin who carefully scooped Ben up into his arms. Exhausted and so, so relieved, Ben clung to him.

“Thank God. I’ve been looking everywhere for you.” Ben settled into Kevin’s arms comfortably, knowing that now he could relax; he was safe now. “You know…I thought for a while…I’d lost you.”

“Yeah,” Kevin said softly. “Same here.” He held Ben close. “Now let’s get outta here.”

Ben still clung to him even after they were safely out of the building. He didn’t think he’d ever let go again.

 

**As You Wish**  
With official hero-work came a lot of stress for Ben. A sense of urgency. It didn’t surprise anyone that he got snappy sometimes; barking orders as though he were a general, patrolling at all hours of the night, tracking down even the vaguest-sounding signs of DNAlien activity.

It surprised him, personally, that Kevin was just taking it all in stride. And it kind of annoyed him. Which ended up making him harder on Kevin.

But no matter how much Ben snapped at him, for some reason all he said was, “As you wish,” in that smooth, casual way of his, with a wave of his hand, like it was no big deal.

“Kevin, see if you can get any tips on this new hive’s location.”

“As you wish.”

“Kevin, go pick up Gwen and meet me at Wallford Street. I want to see you both there in half an hour.”

“As you wish.”

That was all he ever said. It was confusing and infuriating, but at the same time it caused a strange stirring in his heart. A warm feeling, which made him wonder if he was missing something important.

And then one day he realized that when Kevin said “As you wish,” what he really meant was, “I love you.”

It was then that he realized that he loved Kevin back.

One evening, when the stress of the day had finally dissipated, when things were calm for the moment, Ben saw Kevin start to leave. They were alone. No opportunity could be more perfect than this.

“Kevin!”

Kevin turned around, raising a brow. Ben grasped at fading words, trying to find something to say.

He opened his mouth. “Uh…go see a movie with me?”

Kevin smiled. “As you wish.”

 

**Catching Up**  
Max Tennyson looked into his grandson’s eyes, which glowed with the fire and also with joy at being reunited with his grandfather, of course. There was an inner peace there, a strong new sense of maturity that he had never seen before.

Ben had grown so much, he could see it.

“How’ve you and Gwen been, Ben?” he asked quietly.

“We’ve been all right, I guess.” Ben smiled. “Gwen’s really developed her powers. S’pecially since we met Grandma, anyway.” Ben smiled slyly, and Max chuckled.

“How is Verdona?”

“Completely off her rocker,” Ben replied, making Max chuckle again. “But I’m pretty sure she means well.”

“Always did. But she sure is a free spirit, your grandmother.” Max paused. “And…how’s Kevin?”

A faint blush tinted Ben’s cheeks, lasting only a few seconds. But it was there, and it was enough for Max to see that Ben was still attached to that boy, even after five years.

“He, uh…he’s been…a big help. He’s stronger than ever, and he’s happy to be a Plumber.” Ben smiled fondly, lost in a cloud of happy thoughts. “He’s doing so well for himself.”

“Must make you pretty proud, huh?”

Ben looked up; there was that blush again. “Um…well, I guess so. Yeah, I’m proud of him. He’s come a long way from being a con.”

There was silence between them, mostly because Max wanted his grandson to stew in his answer for a while. It seemed unfinished somehow.

“You know,” he began after a while, “Kevin was your friend before he was anything else, wasn’t he?”

The blush intensified. “Y-yeah. He was. I remember.”

“How about now?”

Max hadn’t thought it was possible, but the blush got redder still. “Well…yeah. S-sort of…”

Another silence. Was it cruel of a grandfather to enjoy watching his grandson squirm with embarrassment?

After a while, Max stood up. “Well. We should get to planning.”

Ben stood up, grateful for the change of subject. He was still red in the face, though. “Right. Let’s do that.”

And with that, Max thumped Ben on the shoulder. “I’m glad we go to catch up.”


	6. Return

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set 6. Featuring Kevin in high school because I liked the idea.

**Return**  
Ben stumbled forward onto solid ground, having a hard time catching his footing even here, because for some reason, Kevin’s urgent pull remained urgent.

Immediately after exiting the Null Void, Ben was pulled flush against Kevin’s chest, the older boy’s arms practically squeezing the life out of him.

“Don’t you _ever_ do that _again_.”

Ben’s eyes widened, and he pushed against Kevin’s chest. He didn’t understand. Had Kevin been worried? “I’m… _fine_ , Kevin…let go…I can’t breathe…”

Kevin loosened his grip, but he didn’t let go. He glared at Ben. “What the hell was that, cutting the line? You have no idea how scared I was when I saw the cord go slack!”

“Kevin!” Gwen scolded in the background; somehow Ben had forgotten her in the shock of being suddenly hugged by Kevin. “That probably wasn’t his fault, Kevin!” Gwen snapped.

Kevin didn’t respond, but he seemed to acknowledge her words. He dropped that subject and quickly latched onto another. “I should have gone in there with you. What the hell was I thinking, letting you go alone? I know more about the place than you do, don’t I…?”

“Kevin…” Ben searched his eyes worriedly. This behavior was so unlike him.

“It wasn’t your fault either, Kevin,” Gwen sighed. “Let’s just all be happy he’s okay.”

For a long, very personal moment, Kevin and Ben stared at each other. Then Kevin let him go, and backed away.

“Yeah…yeah…he’s okay, so everything’s cool. Right.” He sighed. He really didn’t believe that.

Ben gently laid a hand on his arm. “Hey…for what it’s worth…I’m sorry I worried you.”

Kevin managed a small smile. He seemed at least slightly relieved.

“Yeah, okay. Let’s go home.” Back in a playful mood, Kevin ruffled Ben’s hair as he headed out the door. “I’ll buy you a smoothie on the way home.”

Gwen laughed.

Ben cheered.

And suddenly everything was okay again.

 

**Smart and Sexy**  
As they drove home that night, Gwen asked Ben, “So how’d you get so smart, Ben? Even I had no idea that Tyler was a DNAlien. _He_ didn’t even know.”

Kevin chuckled, glancing at Gwen through the rear-view mirror. “I know, he’s usually such a dork.”

Ben pouted. “Hey!”

“I’m just kidding, Ben. You know I love you.”

Gwen rolled her eyes. “Typical. I ask Ben a simple question and you use it as an excuse to flirt.”

“Okay, okay, so I like to flirt,” Kevin admitted, then he sobered up. “All right, I can answer your question for you: Ben didn’t _get_ smart. He just is. He’s figured out some tricky stuff before, remember?”

Gwen looked skeptical. But Ben looked totally won over.

“Aww, Kevin, you really think I’m smart?”

“Smart and sexy. A double threat.”

Gwen rolled her eyes again and started rolling down her window. Again, Kevin glanced at her through the rear-view mirror.

“What are you doing?”

“Well, all the sap is making me sick. And I figured if I threw up on the interior you’d make me pay for it.”

 

**Third Wheel**  
Through the battle, Tyler couldn’t help but scope out his strange new friends. The brunette was obviously the leader. He had that aura about him, an unspoken authority that the other two seemed to follow. The taller male, the one with the black hair—he was the muscle, but also the guy with all the information. Not only could he punch out aliens left and right, but he seemed to know a lot about their technology. The girl—the one with the…purple…power—was strong, but not nearly as strong as the two boys she traveled with. Her role was…unclear to Tyler.

After mulling it over, giving it some thought, he had to words for her: Third Wheel.

The girl—Gwen, that was her name—Gwen was useful and everything, but she just didn’t have…the kind of _chemistry_ with her team that the other two had.

And speaking of chemistry—there was something unbelievably powerful with those two boys. Even when they weren’t next to each other they moved and they fought and they sometimes even spoke like a single unit. Everything they did was either directly or indirectly influenced by the other’s actions. But Gwen…Gwen was an afterthought.

And it looked like she knew it, too.

 

**No Sacrifices**  
Kevin played with Ben’s hair when he was thinking really hard. And the deeper his thoughts the more extensive his strokes…sometimes he wound up putting Ben to sleep with his ministrations. Tonight he practically massaged Ben’s scalp, his caressing fingers lined with worries. As much as Ben was enjoying the attention, the obvious emotional turmoil Kevin was in was more important. So he struggled out of the blissful hold sleep was beginning to have on him and turned piercing eyes on his loved one.

“Kevin, what is it?”

“Hmm?” Kevin looked down at him.

“You’re thinking hard about something,” Ben said matter-of-factly. “What is it?”

Kevin didn’t answer him for a couple of minutes. But he wasn’t ignoring the question, Ben could tell, because the motion of Kevin’s fingers changed just slightly.

“I was wondering,” Kevin began, “if…when you said ‘no sacrifices…’ I was wondering if that included you.”

Ben blinked at him in surprise. “Me? What…of course I wouldn’t sacrifice myself, Kevin.”

“Wouldn’t you?”

Those words coupled with Kevin’s soft, pitiful stare made Ben second-guess his own words. He slumped down onto the bed. Kevin stopped touching his hair altogether, focused totally on Ben’s answer, now. Which wasn’t coming. Kevin took it as a confirmation of his fears and he grew agitated.

“Don’t you ever think of anybody but yourself, Ben? You would have ditched me and Gwen in a heartbeat to try and fix things in the Null Void, I know. I bet if it came down to it, you’d get yourself killed for the sake of the Earth.”

Ben’s brow furrowed. He frowned. “Well, if it came down to it, yeah, I would. I have to protect the Earth. It’s my duty.”

“Fuck that!” Kevin leaned over him, his frown deeper and his eyes more fierce. “If it came right down to it, Ben, I would sacrifice the Earth before you. You’re more important to me.”

Ben lay there, speechless. He didn’t know what to say.

“So…when you say ‘no sacrifices…’ include yourself in that, will you?”

And, smiling, Ben craned his neck upward and answered Kevin with a gentle kiss.

“Okay.”

 

**> An Issue of Trust**  
Kevin flopped down on the nearest soft surface—in other words, Ben’s couch. He, Ben and Gwen were back there, now after retrieving the holo-viewer.

Gwen frowned. “Still sore?”

Kevin looked at her. “Taedenite is _not_ a fun substance to absorb.” A roundabout answer, as usual. Gwen gave him a gracious smile anyway.

“I’ll go make you some tea or something.” She left.

Ben rolled his eyes. “It’s my house…” he grumbled.

“Hey, Tennyson. C’mere,” Kevin mumbled from the couch. Ben glanced over, clearly not interested in doing as he was asked.

“What do you want?”

Frowning, Kevin rolled over on his stomach to look directly at Ben. “Aw, come on, I got you the holo-viewer…you still don’t trust me?”

“You know why it’s so hard to.” Ben’s eyes got a faraway, sad look. He paused. The pain in his heart didn’t warrant what he was insinuating. “No…it’s not that I don’t…trust you to help us. I’m just…having a hard time forgetting the past.” He glanced toward the kitchen. “Especially…with everything going on with Gwen…”

Kevin looked surprised. “You think that…?”

Ben looked at him now. His expression answered Kevin’s question.

“No way. _No_ way.” Kevin shook his head. “Yeah, sure, Gwen’s pretty—but it’s you I fell in love with. It’s you I did this for.” He gave Ben a hopeful look. “I wanted you to know that.”

It took a moment, but Ben had listened. And slowly, he began to smile.

Kevin smiled, too. “You gonna come over here and let me lay on you?”

Ben laughed. “Oh, is that what you wanted?” He got up and moved to the couch, where Kevin happily snuggled up on his lap. Ben kissed him. “Love you.”

Gwen came in two minutes later with a tray of teacups and a baffled expression.

 

**Super Bowl Sunday**  
Being an average, mostly stereotypical female, normally Gwen didn’t care for football and would retreat to the mall whenever Super Bowl Sunday came around. There was nothing more annoying than watching guys jump up and down, bellowing and shrieking about “touchdowns” and “kickoffs” and other such nonsense.

But ever since Kevin and Ben started dating, Super Bowl Sunday became _much_ more entertaining.

A long history of hating and opposing Ben, though ended with a dramatic love confession, was still ingrained into small parts of Kevin’s mind. This is why he and Ben always happened to root for opposing teams. So whoever lost usually triggered a lover’s quarrel that easily rivaled anything that had gone on in the football game.

After hours of not understanding what was going on, Gwen watched a triumphant Kevin leap up from the couch and shout, “YES! And, it’s OVER!” Ben slumped back into the cushions, clearly very pissed. Gwen picked up the bowl of potato chips on the coffee table in front of them and sat back to watch the _real_ action of the day.

“Don’t be too excited, Levin. You won’t stand a chance next year.”

Kevin rolled his eyes. “Right. Just like I didn’t stand a chance last year. Or the year before that. Or the year before that.”

Ben shot up off the couch. “Do you _really_ want to start with this?”

Gwen munched on a chip, giggling to herself. _‘Okay, Kevin, will you take the challenge?’_

Of course. “Only if you intend to finish it.”

_‘Ooh, this is getting good!’_

Ben didn’t go for the Omnitrix, but attempted to tackle Kevin with his own strength. Not really in his favor. Kevin pinned him to the couch in less than a minute.

Kevin smirked. “I win. Again.”

Scowling, Ben shoved him off. “That’s it, Levin. My ass is off-limits for the rest of the _month_.” Kevin gaped at him. Gwen stifled her laughter in another mouthful of potato chips.

_‘He shoots, he scores—not.’_

Ben stormed off. Kevin turned around to gape at Gwen.

“What the hell does he expect me to do for a month?”

Gwen just smiled and munched on another chip.

 

**Homework**  
Kevin bashed his head against his desk repeatedly. The thing was brand-new and sturdy, as he’d just bought it a day ago to put it in his apartment, so needless to say, it hurt.

But maybe if he ended up with brain damage, he could have an excuse not to take that entrance exam.

Kevin had a job—several jobs, actually; that paid well for his apartment and all the living expenses that went with it—but recently he’d been feeling that even his extensive knowledge of the universe and technology was limited. He’d decided, after much thought and plenty of encouragement from his companions, to get back into high school. He just had to take an entrance exam first.

An entrance exam that was slowly gnawing away at his sanity.

“You know, Kevin, I think you’re doing more damage to the desk than you are to your head.”

Kevin laid his head sideways on the desk, staring up irritably at Ben’s smirking face.

“I hate this.”

Ben pulled up a chair next to him. “It was your decision, you know.”

“Yeah, well, I’m starting to regret it.”

Ben smiled softly, and set his head on top of folded arms in front of Kevin’s frowning face. “You’ll do fine. Just remember that, and this exam will be a breeze.” He added a reassuring kiss, just for good measure.

Kevin sighed. Just that one kiss had melted away some of his tension. “You’re somethin’ else, Benji.”

Ben just smiled again. “Need some help studying?”

Kevin smirked. “Well…I am having a little trouble with biology.” Ben laughed and kissed him again.

Suddenly Kevin felt that he’d be just fine.

 

**Caretaker**  
“Hmm…102.4. Yep, you’ve got a fever.”

Ben groaned and flopped back onto his pillow, then cringed as even the softness didn’t help his horrible headache. “I feel like crap.” He sneezed loudly as if to prove it.

Kevin handed him a tissue. “You don’t look so great, either.”

Ben blew his nose. “Ugh…how’m I supposed to fight aliens like this?”

“Uh, you’re not,” Kevin chuckled, giving Ben a kiss on the forehead. Compared to the young hero’s burning forehead, those lips were cool and felt wonderful. “You’re supposed to take it easy and get better.”

“But what if aliens attack my house?” Ben whined. Despite the fact that aliens _could_ attack his house and had done so in the past, Ben’s tone made the idea sound absolutely ridiculous. Kevin couldn’t help but laugh a little.

“You’re too cute.”

Pouting, the brunette snuggled down further under the blankets. “Shut up. You’re not supposed to make fun of someone when they’re sick.”

Kevin ruffled his hair. “Sorry. And don’t worry. If aliens attack your house, I’ll be sure to fight ‘em off. I’m gonna be here taking care of you, anyway.”

Ben glanced at him. “All day?”

“All week, if that’s how it goes.”

Ben smiled. “Get me some soup?”

Kevin kissed his forehead again. “Be right back.” He left the room, and Ben sighed happily.

He was lucky to have such a loving caretaker.

 

**With Flying Colors**  
Kevin watched Ben and Gwen pile stuff onto his kitchen table. The cousins had gone out and bought every celebratory food and drink product known to mankind (except for alcohol—as far as the two were concerned, enrolling as a student meant no illegal activities whatsoever for Kevin). Piled on his table were chips and dip, giant 2-liter bottles of soda, cookies, pretzels, pizza (it’s not delivery, it’s Dijorno!), and one chocolate cake the size of Montana with “Congratulations!” written on it in frilly-looking pink letters.

“You guys didn’t have to buy all this stuff,” he said to the excited cousins, eyes roving almost fearfully over the spread. “I don’t even know if I passed the exam.”

“C’mon, Kevin; you studied your ass off all week before that exam,” Ben replied. “I’d be surprised if you didn’t pass.”

Gwen pried open one of the soda bottles and poured it in a plastic cup. She handed the cup to Kevin an added, “Relax. We have confidence in you.” Kevin took the cup and took a gulp; he still wasn’t convinced.

Ben plopped down onto the couch on Kevin’s right, munching on a handful of pretzels. Gwen took the left side, sipping her own soda. Both of them leaned over Kevin’s shoulders, peering at the unopened envelope in the mutant’s hands.

He’d gotten the letter earlier that day, when Ben happened to be over. The instant he’d announced where the letter had come from, Ben had leapt from his seat on Kevin’s bed and told him not to open it; he’d get Gwen and they’d buy a few things and they’d all have a party to celebrate.

“I mean it,” Ben had said. “Don’t open it. I’ll be back.” He gave Kevin a quick kiss and was out the door.

Now Kevin wasn’t sure he wanted to open it at all.

Ben nudged him in the ribs with his elbow. “Go on,” he insisted, “open it.”

Kevin took a glance at the cousins, both staring at him eagerly, and took a deep breath.

Then he opened it.

“Congratulations Mister Levin” was all he read before a huge grin broke out on his face and Ben and Gwen jumped up, cheering. It turned out he’d gotten an 89 on his exam.

Then they all ate cake and pizza and drank soda and Gwen and Ben sang “He’s a Jolly Good Fellow,” and the whole time Kevin was smiling.

He couldn’t believe it. He’d passed.

 

**In the Halls**  
Only a week had passed since Kevin had gone back to school, and already he was realizing that weird shit happened in the hallways.

Smaller kids got shoved into lockers (which was both incredibly stupid and incredibly amazing considering that he’d never thought high school students were actually small enough to fit in lockers), girls gossiped about things that probably should be talked about in a more private setting, Goths and punks clustered around the water fountains and glared at people that came too close, and the occasional group of nerds huddled together in a circle with video games under their noses.

Then there were things like this. Things that Kevin thought only happened in cheesy shoujo mangas (not that he’d ever read any). Things that were just so unfathomably ridiculous that he couldn’t even speak.

“Um…I know you don’t know me, but…I’m in your English class and ever since I saw you I’ve thought you were really cute…so will you go out with me?” The girl said all this to him in one breath, with blushing cheeks and very poor eye contact. He just stared down at her (God, she was short; now _she_ could fit in a locker) and didn’t say anything. She noticed his silence and, biting her lip, she looked up at him.

“Um…hello?”

Kevin blinked. “Oh, uh…sorry, just…didn’t know what to say there for a minute.”

Mistaking this as a flattered response, the girl smiled hopefully. “So…is that a yes?”

“Ah…sorry. I’ve already got someone.”

The girl’s face fell. “I don’t believe it…you have a girlfriend already?”

Kevin smiled amusedly. “I didn’t say that.”

The girl suddenly looked very confused. But before she could say anything, another voice interrupted. Ben spoke to Kevin, completely ignoring the girl’s presence.

“Hey, Kevin. Walk me to Biology?”

Watching the girl out of the corner of his eye, Kevin wrapped an arm around Ben’s shoulders and pulled him closer. “Sure thing, babe.” He gave him a quick kiss on the cheek.

The girl looked absolutely scandalized.

Kevin winked at her as he and Ben walked away.


	7. Tutoring

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set 7. Featuring some crossovers with Sky High, Doctor Who, and Supernatural.

**Tutoring**  
“So, how’re you doing in school these days, Ben?” Julie asked idly one day. Ben looked up from his notebook and frowned.

“Fine, I guess. Why d’you ask?”

Julie shrugged. “Oh, no reason, really. It’s just that you haven’t asked me to help you study in a while.”

“Oh, right.” Ben looked down at his notes again. “I’ve just been asking Kevin for help instead. Sorry, I guess I should’ve mentioned that.”

Julie looked surprised. “You’re asking _Kevin_ for help?”

Ben gave her an indignant look. “Hey, he’s actually a good student. You know he got an 89 on his entrance exam, right?”

“No, not _that_ ,” Julie said. The surprise didn’t leave her face. “I’m just amazed you can actually focus on schoolwork with him instead of sex.”

 

**Little Things**  
Relationships have been made from stranger stuff. And the basis of theirs had been a shaky one. Memories of fierce hatred shamefully fresh in their minds, they share two weeks of careful glances and awkward smiles before they decide to date.

Like any budding relationship, they still have things to work out. Like where they go to dinner; what movies they watch together on weekends; how much (if any) PDA happens on a regular basis. And like any new couple they sometimes have trouble communicating. Sometimes the look in Ben's eyes is a message in a bottle lost at sea; Kevin's responses being the ship that finds it fifty years later. Sometimes there are moments of silence that they fear would stop the world.

And of course, like any anxious, emotional teenagers they fail to notice the little things at first. Things they can't say; don't think to say, because they are already automatic. Their bodies are more aware than they are of these little things; and so it is only in the quiet of night, when their minds are too tired to think, that they don't need to notice.

Ben's head is on the armrest of Kevin's couch and he lazily twirls a lock of black hair in his fingers. Kevin lays with one ear pressed against Ben's chest, listening to his heartbeat, his arms wrapped around his lover's waist.

It's more than just the rhythm of the heartbeat that soothes Kevin. The fact that it's there is even better than the sound itself. At one time, he'd wanted nothing more than for it to stop.

And the fact that it's Ben's fingers curled in his hair right now means that he's been forgiven.

Ben scoots down slightly for a more comfortable position. The armrest under his neck is making him feel stiff. Kevin shifts on top of him as well, the older boy's head nuzzling his chin.

The way Kevin's hair feels in between his fingers...feels nothing like it did five years ago. Clinging onto it for purchase on the mutant's broad back, he'd felt rough knots and matted ends. It was coarse; just like everything else about him at that time.

Now Kevin is softer and kinder; and Ben's fingers glide through his hair as smoothly as if it were water.

Subconsciously, both _feel_ the change. But all they understand is the past. The days of hatred and conflict; days when the sound of a heartbeat or the feel of black hair were not worth a second thought. There were bigger things on their minds then. So the little things are left in the dark.

But relationships have been made of stranger stuff; and as long as their bodies are aware and their hearts are willing, there is a chance that the little things will be brought to the light.

 

**Assigned Seating**  
“Come on, Julie! One little joy-ride? _Please_?”

Julie made a face. “Um…promise never to make that face again and everyone can definitely have a ride.” She looked down at her little dog-like alien pet. “What d’you think, Ship? Is that a deal?”

Ship beeped happily. Kevin stopped making puppy-dog eyes at Julie, which everyone had to agree was very creepy.

Ship transformed into a giant, well, ship and opened up to let them all inside. Julie clambered into one of the front seats and Kevin and Gwen went to one in the back. But before Ben could sit down himself, Gwen was suddenly forced from her seat. Ship gave an unhappy beep.

Gwen frowned. “What was that for?”

“Ship, what’s wrong?” Julie asked.

“Yeah, how come Gwen can’t sit down?” Ben asked. He started to sit down next to Julie, but with another unhappy beep, Ship forced him from his seat as well. While Ben was rubbing his head where it hit the controls, Ship began a series of urgent beeps. “Ow…how come I can’t sit either?”

Ship continued to beep in his urgent manner.

“Ship, what’s wrong?” Julie asked again. “What are you trying to say?”

Ship soon became impatient with all this non-responsiveness and jolted backwards, sending Gwen flying to the back of the cockpit and Ben into the seat next to Kevin, where he was promptly strapped down. Ship gave a satisfied beep. Kevin and Ben looked at each other.

As soon as Gwen had stumbled into the remaining seat, Ship took off for a very awkward twenty-minute flight.

Ben and Kevin learned to sit next to each other whenever they asked for joy-rides after that.

 

**Won’t Say I’m in Love**  
“No!” Ben clapped his hands over both ears, shaking his head vigorously. “No, no, no, no! I’m not hearing it; I’m not seeing it; I’m not saying it. I am _not_ in love with Kevin!”

Gwen and Julie looked at each other, sighing.

“You’re going to have to admit it eventually,” Gwen told him. “One day Kevin’s bound to notice the goofy smile you get on your face whenever you see him.”

“Or hear his voice,” Julie added.

“Or think of him,” Gwen put in. “Even if that one’s considerably less obvious.”

“I do _not_ get a goofy smile on my face,” Ben protested.

Gwen frowned and tried something else. “You liked him five years ago.”

“Exactly. _Five years ago_.” Ben flopped backwards onto his bed and glared at the ceiling. “That’s over and done with. He refused to stop being evil and that was that.”

“But he’s good now, isn’t he?” Julie pointed out.

“So what? Like I said, I don’t love him.”

Gwen and Julie sighed again. “Yes you do!”

Ben threw a pillow and turned over onto his stomach. “Will you two get _off_ my _case_? I do _not_ love Kevin!”

“Oh, you girls don’t know how to give a boy a break, do you?”

Everyone looked up. Gwen and Ben each got big smiles on their faces.

“Grandma!” Gwen ran up for a hug. Verdona chuckled.

“I told you I’d be checking in now and again,” she said as Gwen finally stepped back from the hug. She seated herself comfortably on Ben’s bed and asked, “Now, what’s this about you being in love?”

Ben pouted. “They’re trying to talk me into saying I’m in love with Kevin. Which I’m _not_ ,” he added irritably, glaring at Julie and his cousin. Verdona smiled at that and opened up her arms.

“Come here, sweetie. Grandma won’t let them pick on you.” Ben smiled and practically jumped into her arms, and she held him against her chest. “Not that I disagree with them, mind you,” she put in as soon as he was quite securely in her arms.

Ben made a disbelieving noise and looked up at her. “Grandma!” Verdona just smiled and patted his back.

Gwen laughed a little. “You see, Ben? Even Grandma Verdona sees it. Ben grumbled against his grandmother’s chest.

“…not in love with him,” he mumbled.

“Yes you are, dear,” Verdona said matter-of-factly.

“Let’s take another look at the evidence,” Julie said, pulling out her notepad. “Number one, you liked him in the past. Number two, you smile a lot whenever you’re around him. Number three, he is your favorite conversation topic.”

“Is not!” Ben protested.

Julie gave him a flat look. “Remember our date, before it went insane and I got kidnapped by Ship?”

Ben grumbled again.

“Moving on,” Julie started again, clearing her throat, “Number four, whenever the opportunity presents itself, you like to be sitting or standing right next to him.”

“And before you say otherwise, Ben; last week you practically _fought_ me to get in the passenger seat,” Gwen interjected.

“I was feeling a little carsick that day,” Ben argued lamely.

“I think he’s heard enough,” Verdona interrupted, patting Ben’s back again. “He’ll admit it when he wants to.”

Ben sighed. “Thanks, Grandma.” He could tell the other two were disappointed.

He’d never say it out loud, anyway. _‘But,’_ he thought, settling comfortably in his grandmother’s arms, _‘I do love him.’_

 

**The Good Old Days**  
When Kevin Levin transferred into Sky High (straight into his sophomore year through the school’s new “Young Villain Reform” program) he bragged about the numerous bank robberies and weapons trades that got him landed in solitary—when he was eleven. He carried himself with a swagger, and even though he was younger than them, within two days he had Lash and Speed following him around like they were his little puppy dogs.

Will had teased Warren, “I think he may be more badass than you.”

Warren had smirked and replied, “Shut up, Stronghold.”

That same year, Ben Tennyson had come to the school as a freshman. Anybody who talked about him called him a prodigy. He was born to normal, human parents and discovered his unusual shape-shifting powers at the age of ten. Apparently, he’d immediately started up the hero business and, in fact, was the one who put Kevin Levin into solitary.

“A bigger legend than you, eh, Stronghold?” Warren ribbed his boyfriend. Will just rolled his eyes.

Naturally when the two new big legends on campus learned of each other’s presence, things got…broken. The whole cafeteria, to be exact.

“Ah, the good old days,” Magenta sighed. She and Layla were watching the fight with expressions of nostalgia. “Look, that Tennyson kid’s even throwing fireballs,” she added, pointing to the giant lava-rock-type creature that was undeniably Ben.

“How long d’you think they have before they start mackin’ on each other in the halls?” Zach asked boredly.

“I give ‘em three weeks. A month, tops.”

Will gave Warren a strange look. “It’s like you’re saying they’re smarter than us. It took us until just last summer to hook up.”

“Remember, though; Tennyson was responsible for sending Levin to solitary five years ago,” Warren pointed out. “They’ve known each other longer than we have.” Will had to concede to that.

“Aww!” Layla suddenly cooed. “Kevin just picked up the lunch table!”

Warren and Will glanced over at the scene.

“Where the hell is Principal Powers?” Will wondered aloud. Warren shrugged.

“Who knows? Wanna go take care of it?”

Will sighed and stood up. “I’ll go grab the fire extinguisher.”

Warren stood up, too, chuckling.

They went to stop the fight. Then they agreed to set the two rivals up for Save the Citizen later.

Just like the good old days.

 

**Male Bonding**  
“God, finally!”

Kevin slumped against his car as he and Ben finally managed to roll it into the small, abandoned garage. Once he’d caught his breath, he turned to survey the damage.

“Shit…dented bumper, front tires out, paint’s scratched…you just _had_ to throw the giant _rosebush alien_ in the direction of my _car_ , didn’t you?” Kevin turned to glare at Ben. Ben just smiled apologetically.

“Sorry. I wasn’t thinking.”

Kevin sighed and looked at his damaged car again, scratching his head. “Well…I can’t do a damn thing without my tools…Omnitrix still timed out?”

Ben held up his wrist to show the Omnitrix’s red face. Kevin cursed.

“Damn it. I knew I shoulda kept a spare toolbox in the trunk.”

“I’ll try calling Gwen; see if she can…I dunno…teleport here with your toolbox or something,” Ben said, pulling out his phone and walking outside.

After several minutes of trying to get a signal, Ben looked up at the sound of arguing. He noticed, about ten feet away, a black car being pushed up the road by two guys. Who were arguing.

“Dean…this…is… _ridiculous_ ,” one was saying through clenched teeth.

“That auto-shop…bastard…ain’t touchin’ my car,” the other one replied. “Keep pushin’ Sammy.”

Ben recalled with some irony having the exact same conversation with Kevin not too long ago.

When they finally reached the small garage, both looking relieved, Kevin came out, evidently wondering what was taking Ben so long to call Gwen. Then he saw the two guys.

“You need somethin’?” Kevin asked.

“Yeah.” the one called Dean jerked his head towards the garage. “I need to get in there and fix my car so my brother and I can be on our way.”

Kevin looked over the black car appraisingly. “’67 Impala,” he said after a moment, sounding neither impressed nor disapproving. Dean raised a brow.

“Yeah, and?”

“Got any tools?”

“You’re not touchin’ my car,” Dean told Kevin vehemently. His brother laid a hand on his arm.

“Dean—”

Ben cleared his throat. “Um, no; what he meant is, we don’t have any tools ourselves. Do you mind if we borrow some?”

Dean peered into the garage. “’76 Camaro,” he said in very much the same manner Kevin had earlier.

“Yeah, and?”

“I’ll let you borrow my tools. They’re in the trunk.” He led Kevin around to the back of the Impala while Ben and the brother called Sam just stood in front of the garage. Seconds later, Kevin had a maniacal outburst of, “Ohhh, _stoked_!” and pulled out some kind of rifle.

“Oh no,” Ben groaned. “He found weapons. I’m never gonna get him back on the road.”

Sam’s lips were set in a thin line as he nodded in agreement. “Tell me about it.”

Sighing, Ben looked at his companion-by-unfortunate-circumstance. “So. What d’you do for a living?”

Sam and Ben spent three hours talking about ghosts and aliens while the other two did some male bonding over auto parts and weaponry.

 

**The Doctor**  
“Ah, Doctor! So good to see you again!”

Paradox greeted his old friend warmly with a firm handshake and the gesture was returned.

“You haven’t changed a bit. How long’s it been this time? Twelve-thousand years? Two-hundred?”

“I was thinking about twenty-thousand this time,” Paradox said, half to himself. “Though I can’t be sure. The timeframe always seems to get away from me.” He peered over the Doctor’s shoulder at his young friend and the grinning young man next to her. “You brought Jack?”

“He tagged along,” the Doctor replied. “Have you met Martha?”

“I don’t believe I’ve had the pleasure,” Paradox answered brightly, holding out his hand to the young woman. She shook it reluctantly. “Splendid! Now, young Ben should be here any minute.”

Very much on cue, at least on Paradox’s part, Ben and his group walked up the others.

The Doctor looked Ben over. “Ah, so this is the one you wanted me to meet.”

“He’s quite a bright individual.”

As Ben came up to them, he greeted Paradox with a typical politeness, while Kevin pointed to the Doctor and said, “Who’s he?”

“His name is the Doctor,” Paradox answered, brushing off Kevin’s rudeness. “He’s the last of a race called the Timelords. So, naturally, he time travels.”

Ben smiled and shook the Doctor’s hand. “Right. Naturally.”

“We didn’t know there were any other time travelers besides you,” Gwen said to Paradox. “This is an interesting surprise.”

“The Doctor here was passing by on his way to visit Ancient Greece,” Paradox continued. “And I thought it would be nice for the two of you to meet.”

“Real pleasure,” Kevin said shortly; and he jerked his head towards the man behind the Doctor currently giving Ben sultry looks. “Who’s the pretty boy there?”

Jack took that opportunity to step forward and take Ben’s hand. “Captain Jack Harkness,” he said with a short wink. “At your service.”

“Jack, stop it,” the Doctor scolded. Though flatly, as though he were tired of saying it.

“Aww.” Jack pouted. “I can never be friendly, can I?”

Kevin yanked Ben away from him. “Not with him ya can’t. Back off, pretty boy!”

Paradox turned to the Doctor with a smile. “Young Kevin is quite a fine example of the adjective ‘possessive,’” he said good-humouredly.

The Doctor put his hands in his coat pocket, looking quite amiable. “Well, at least I don’t have to convince Jack to back off.”

Jack pouted some more.

Kevin glared.

“So!” Paradox clapped once in that cheery ‘let’s move along, then’ way that some people do, “Who wants to take their first look at a TARDIS?”

 

**An Understanding**  
Kevin pulled over at the street corner once Ben was home; the sudden stop almost making Gwen hit her head against the dash. She glared at him.

“What was _that_ about?”

Kevin turned to her. “I need to clear up somethin’,” he told her, “since I don’t want you getting hypnotized by some pretty boy just cuz you’re mad at me.”

“I did _not_ get—”

“Gwen,” Kevin began warningly, his voice rising. He had something to say and he was not going to be interrupted for the sake of female pride. “You were pissed cuz I wouldn’t ask you out, right? I wouldn’t be able to stand it if you got hurt just for a stupid reason like that. I’d never forgive myself.”

Gwen frowned at him suspiciously, her arms folded over her chest. “I know you like me, Kevin. Why haven’t you asked me out?”

Kevin sighed. This one wasn’t going to be easy. “I really do like you. You’re really somethin’ special. I meant that. But the fact is, I like your cousin more.”

Gwen blinked. She wasn’t sure if she heard that right. “My…cousin? As in, Ben? Because he’s the only cousin I have, you know.”

“Yup, that’s the one.”

“Oh.” Gwen blinked. “ _Oh_. Well, that explains a lot. Why didn’t you say so before?”

“Uh…” Kevin stared at her blankly. “I didn’t think you’d take it this well.”

“Well, it’s not like I’m not disappointed,” Gwen admitted. “But I don’t like being in the dark.” She looked Kevin straight in the eye. “No more secrets, okay?”

Kevin blinked. “Okay.”

“Good.” Gwen leaned back in the passenger seat, satisfied that they had reached an understanding.

 

**Save the Citizen**  
“All right, Stronghold, Hothead; who’re you challenging next?”

Warren smirked and jerked his head in the proper direction. “Tennyson and Levin.”

They whooped their asses, of course.

When Will Stronghold and Warren Peace team up, no one can beat them, especially not bitter enemies like Ben Tennyson and Kevin Levin.

That’s not why they challenged them, anyway. They challenged them because it was the right thing to do. Because it would give them a jumpstart on what both Will and Warren already knew would happen.

Coach Boomer knew what they were doing. “Just don’t turn the activity into a matchmaking center, all right?”

By Ben’s insistence and determination and Kevin’s pride, the two demanded a challenge three times that week, and two more the next. They never won, but it was obvious that they were slowly becoming closer.

And then one day the super couple’s subtle efforts finally paid off. After three weeks of repeated battles, the news spread around the school that Ben Tennyson and Kevin Levin were dating (this was all thanks to a mind reader that had happened to pick it up in the locker room).

“Save the Citizen,” Principal Powers sighed that afternoon in her office. “We really need to reconsider the workings of this game. I can’t understand how it keeps bringing students together.”

 

**The First Move**  
Ben sat shoulder to shoulder with Kevin at the lunch table about six feet from theirs. Layla and Magenta cooed at them while they munched on salad and overcooked chili. Warren and Will just looked proud of themselves; and as usual, Zach was making a giant conundrum out of the entire thing.

“Who d’you think made the first move?”

Magenta sighed, only half-listening as she watched Kevin put his arm around Ben. “I bet Kevin. He’s so impatient and forward; I don’t think he would’ve been able to hold back for long.”

“Really? He seems all surly and moody to me; like Warren,” Zach mused. “Wait a minute—Warren, did you make the first move or did Will?” Will opened his mouth to answer for Warren, but his boyfriend cut him off quickly with a kiss.

“No, don’t tell him; I want him to guess.”

Will chuckled. “You’re so weird.”

Layla rolled her eyes. “It was Warren, of course. Will didn’t even know he was gay until _I_ told him.”

Warren scowled. “Ruin my fun, will you, hippie?” Layla smiled back at him sweetly.

“I’d have to agree with Magenta on those two,” Ethan said, referring back to Kevin and Ben. “Kevin’s too impatient.”

“He’s also stubborn,” Will pointed out. “He was the first one to say he hated Tennyson, right?”

“But Ben’s also innocent and sweet,” Layla said helpfully. “Just like you, Will.” She smiled; and the extreme sickly sweetness of it almost made Warren gag.

“Innocent and sweet? Seriously hippie—dense sums him up nicely.”

Pouting, Will shoved Warren’s face away when he leaned in for a kiss. “What a loving boyfriend you are,” he said sarcastically.

Warren sighed. “Look, has anyone considered just _asking_ them?”

Everyone looked at him.

He turned back to his would-likely-remain-uneaten mystery meat, grumbling, “Of course not, that would just be the easy thing to do, wouldn’t it?”

And everyone went back to guessing, while Layla and Magenta simultaneously “ooh”ed and “aww”ed over the happy couple.


	8. Guess Who's Back?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set 8.

**Guess Who’s Back?**  
“Tennyson, watch out!”

Ben ducked as a barrage of slime came his way. His teeth ground together in frustration. He was trying to get the Omnitrix to start up again and these constant attacks weren’t helping the situation.

“Gwen, a little _cover_ , please?”

Gwen hurled a few balls of energy at some DNAliens facing her. “Kinda busy with my own problems, here!” But she flung a temporary shield Ben’s way. But it didn’t hold long and soon Ben had to dodge slime again.

Then one of them managed to get close to him. It raised a claw to strike, and then…

…then suddenly it reeled backwards, squealing like a dying boar, with what looked like thorns lodged in its eye.

Thorns. Why was that so familiar?

“Tennyson, behind you!” Kevin called; and Ben whirled around, coming face-to-face with a Highbreed. The Highbreed didn’t even look at him, though; and fired more thorns from the tips of its claws. The dying boar squeal sounded again a couple more times, letting him know that the thorns had struck.

“Do not let your guard down, Ben-Ben Tennyson!” the Highbreed snarled at him. But despite the usual disgusted hint every Highbreed had in their voice, Ben smiled.

“Riney!”

Kevin threw a DNAlien into one of its comrades, looking over at the High-Breed and the cheerful Ben with disbelief. “ _Riney_?! What the hell is a ‘ _Riney_ ’?!”

“Guys, we need to get out of here!” Gwen shouted. “There’re too many!”

“I will hold them off,” the rumbling voice of the Highbreed told Ben.

Ben hesitated. “Be sure to get out safely,” he said. And then the rest of the group retreated.

Then there was definitely an explanation to be had.

“Since when were you friends with a Highbreed?” Kevin demanded. “They’re not the most sociable of species, in case you forgot!”

“I don’t think we can trust him, Ben,” Gwen agreed.

“Hey, I spent a long time on that desert planet with a Highbreed, remember?” Ben prompted them. “That was that Highbreed! No other Highbreed would have my back like that. Riney’s on our side.”

“You even have a nickname for him,” Kevin grumbled. “I can’t believe this.”

“It could be a trick,” Gwen pointed out.

“I _know_ that it isn’t,” Ben insisted. “Riney’s changed.” He turned pleading eyes on Kevin. “You did.”

Kevin melted. It didn’t take long, with that look and those words. “Damn it. He’s right.” He looked at Gwen. “Well?”

Gwen sighed. “Well…I guess we can trust him.”

Ben smiled.

 

**Keeping Watch**  
The Highbreed—affectionately dubbed, as he recognized it, “Riney” by Ben-Ben Tennyson—liked to keep close watch on the humans. It was, in part, an automatic thing from his days of hating and distrusting humans. But another part of it was a sense of protectiveness, as a parent would normally have for their offspring, for the human that had changed him. Ben-Ben Tennyson had wanted him to be safe then, when he’d had every right to want him dead, and now he wanted the human to be safe.

Which is why he was…suspicious…of this Levin (or Levin Kevin Levin, as he’d introduced himself) character.

His motives were impure. The way he looked at Ben-Ben was unacceptable.

Ben-Ben was too innocent to see these things, he knew this much from experience. And the Highbreed had no desire to taint the boy with impure ways of thinking. So for now, he would keep his eyes on the suspicious Levin Kevin Levin and protect Ben-Ben Tennyson from whatever evils he exuded.

 

**No Juice for You**  
“No juice for you!”

Kevin stared at Ben incredulously as he walked away. Then he snatched the remaining smoothie on the worktable while Gwen glared at him.

“Kevin,” she said warningly. “You’d better go apologize.”

Kevin scowled bitterly as he sipped the smoothie. “Why should I? He’s the one bein’ pissy.”

“Because,” Gwen began slowly, in a manner that sound like she was explaining to a small child (she might as well have been, too, with the way Kevin was acting right now), “you and I both know that ‘no juice for you’ _really_ means, ‘no sex for you.’” She ended there. Kevin paled.

“Yeah, okay, I’ll go get him.”

 

**Disneyland: First Visit**  
Kevin was at Disneyland. For the first time ever. At sixteen years old.

What was wrong with this picture?

The cousins had been very insistent about this trip. And Kevin could guess why—before he had casually mentioned that he’d never even spent one day at “the happiest place on Earth,” the two had been reminiscing about childhood vacations, including their first trip to this accursed place at five.

Five.

Ben had deemed this lack of Disneyland in Kevin’s life as the reason why he had become a criminal. Now Kevin was considering it to be the reason why he had never actually killed anyone with his bare hands. Because he really wanted to strangle this “Goofy” character.

“No I don’t want a picture with ‘Sheriff Goofy’! Get the hell away from me you crazy dog…thing!”

“Kevin,” Ben scolded, “you’re scaring the kids.”

“Well the weirdoes in costumes are scaring me. No mouse is that happy. And that dog looks high.” Kevin was frowning. “Seriously, Ben, the only thing that’s even half fun around here is the shooting gallery. And I ran out of quarters ten minutes ago.” He looked around. “Where’s Gwen?”

“She went to load up on fast-passes. Though I won’t count on her being back anytime soon. The Jungle Cruise line just went way down.”

“So it’s just you and me, huh?” Kevin grinned. “Okay, getting better. Where’s a good place to make out in this crazy theme park?”

Ben blushed. “Come on, Kevin, can’t you just have fun?”

“Well, I’m trying, but if you’re not gonna cooperate—”

Ben sighed. “Oh, all right. But I don’t wanna go too far from Gwen, so you’ll have to put up with singing birds.” Kevin growled.

“I hate birds.”

But he grabbed Ben by the arm and dragged him off to the Tiki Room anyway.

And by the time that was over and they met up with Gwen again, Kevin had already decided that maybe Disneyland wasn’t so bad.

 

**Disneyland: Second Visit**  
The first time they went, Ben and Gwen placed bets on what Kevin’s favorite ride would be at the end of the day. At the end of _that_ day, though, they only succeeded in discovering that Kevin should never be left alone with _any_ of the costumed characters, that he was too big to fit in the Autopia cars, and that Splash Mountain caused him to involuntarily spark for at least half an hour (this one ended with him and Ben hiding in the bathroom until he stopped zapping anybody unlucky enough to brush up against him).

The second time they went to visit, they got their answer. Ben put his money on Pirates of the Caribbean. It was mostly dark and Ben figured he’d get a kick out of the pirate thing. Gwen had been positive that it would be Star Tours; if for nothing else but the speed and the silly robot.

They were both wrong.

Matterhorn. The ride itself not unfathomable, but the reason for liking it made passersby glare disapprovingly and Ben want to hide in a trash bin.

Kevin liked the seating arrangements of the ride. He liked having Ben in his lap.

He said so with a big, obnoxious grin on his face.

And despite the embarrassment on Ben’s part, they still rode the Matterhorn three times together before going to the Mickey Mouse theater to make out.

It was quieter than the Tiki Room. Kevin was thankful.

 

**Clowns**  
Long story short, they went to the circus. They thought it’d be fun.

Then the clown lost half his face makeup in a pie fight with the dancing monkey, revealing endless bags under the eyes and a giant scar. Ben screamed. And jumped behind Kevin.

Even as they left, he was still clinging to Kevin’s arm, muttering about how clowns are evil and he had every right to be scared of them when he was ten.

Gwen sighed at him. “Ben, you got _over_ that, remember? Zombozo? Ghostfreak? Ring any bells?”

Ben pouted in response. “Clowns are evil!” At that point Kevin managed to wrestle his arm out of Ben’s grasp and opted to wrap it around the smaller boy’s shoulders, pulling him close to his side.

“Don’t worry, Benji. I’ll be sure to protect you from those mean, nasty clowns.” He was obviously teasing Ben, but Ben didn’t notice. Actually, he looked grateful.

“Really? You will?”

Gwen shook her head. She saw the giant grin on Kevin’s face. “Kevin, don’t—”

“Hey, is that the clown?”

“Aaahh! Save me, Kevin!” Ben buried his face in Kevin’s shirt.

Kevin laughed.

Gwen hit them both over the head.

 

**Auto Shop**  
A swift knock on the beat-up hood of an old Cadillac alerted the garage to Kevin’s presence. The teen was an odd sight in the garage without grease and oil stains all over his clothing, but nonetheless, everyone was happy to see him. Well, except for a short blonde kid in the back, who just looked confused.

“Kevin! Haven’t seen you around here in a while. We thought you’d quit on us.” The man that had spoken had black smudges all over his face, and heavy wrinkles around his eyes. The man smiled a lot. He treated everyone in the garage like family, and they treated him like a father.

Kevin shook his head. “Come on, Jonh, now why would I quit the best job I’ve ever had? Besides, I get free auto parts here.” He smiled. “I’ve just been busy lately. Got back into school. But I thought I’d drop by and check in on everybody here. Business good?”

John tapped the side of the car he was working on with a wrench. “Never better,” he replied.

“Hey, how’s your _girlfriend_?” someone called from the back. Kevin looked back at man waggling his eyebrows suggestively. The whole garage laughed.

“Quit buttin’ into peoples’ personal lives, Sean!” John called; though he was chuckling a little himself.

Kevin laughed. “Nah, it’s cool. And my _girlfriend_ is doing great, thanks for asking Sean.”

“What’s she look like?”

Everyone turned to the blonde kid. His curiosity must’ve gotten the better of him; but he was shy and turned his eyes to the floor the minute he’d said it. Kevin just smirked.

“Who’s the squirt?”

“New kid,” John answered. “Name’s David. Hired him two days ago.”

Kevin got a mischievous look on his face. “I see. So you wanna know what my _girlfriend_ looks like, huh, David? Well, she’s got the most gorgeous pair of green eyes you’ll ever see, and—you know what, she’ll be here any minute. So you can see for yourself.” He grinned.

And then: “Do you always call me a girl around your auto shop buddies?”

Kevin threw an arm around Ben’s shoulders. David’s jaw dropped and he blushed. The rest of the garage just laughed.

“Yeah, well, it’s sort of an inside joke. Ready to go?”

Ben kissed him. “Sure.”

They walked away together while David was still gaping. John caught a glimpse of his face and smiled.

“Yeah, we were all surprised at first, too.”

 

**The First Move: Just Ask**  
“Warren, it’s rude to just bust out and ask them in the middle of the lunchroom like this!” Will hissed at his boyfriend. Warren ignored him.

“Hey, Levin, Tennyson; got a question for you.” The two looked at him, Levin scowling a little.

“What d’you want, Peace? We’re tryin’ to eat, here.”

“Kevin!” Ben nudged his boyfriend in the ribs. “Would you stop being such a jerk? What is it, Warren?”

At his side, Will was muttering threats over and over, “If you so much as hint at that question I’m going to throw you across the cafeteria!”

_‘He wouldn’t,’_ Warren thought amusedly as he asked, “So who made the first move?”

Ben and Kevin looked at each other. “Um…why d’you ask?” Kevin frowned at the pyro, who only shrugged.

“Well, it’s just that my friends have been guessing for days and it’s been driving me absolutely insane.” He flashed that two-second grin he had when he was trying to appear at least a little bit amiable. “So I’d like to get this cleared up once and for all.”

Kevin glanced at Will, who had his face in his palm and was shaking his head. Then he flashed the same two-second grin and said, “I get it. Okay, then. I made the first move. All good?”

Warren nodded; and he and Kevin briefly pounded fists before Warren headed back to the lunch table with Will.

Ben and Kevin went back to eating their lunch.

Much to Warren’s dismay, the theories didn’t stop with that. With this new information in hand, Layla and Zach traded ideas as to how Kevin could have approached Ben.

Warren wondered if he was ever going to hear the end of it.

 

**This Means War**  
Gwen looked the spike-covered boy up and down. “So you’re Pierce. It’s nice to meet you. I’m Gwen, and this is Kevin.” She gestured to the teen next to her who glared at Pierce with suspicion.

“What are you doing here, Pierce? Did Grandpa Max send you?” Ben seemed so excited about that prospect that he didn’t even notice the tinge of pink that crossed Pierce’s cheeks.

“Um…yeah. Things are starting to calm down in the Null Void, so…he wanted to send someone up here to help you out. I mean…if you needed it.” He looked down at his shoes. “I volunteered.”

“Thanks for the offer, porcupine, but we’re fine without you,” Kevin said sharply, earning him a pair of green-eyed glares.

“You _know_ we can always use new team members,” Ben scolded. “And Pierce has tangled with a lot of aliens—of course he’d be helpful!”

Pierce and Kevin stared each other down. It didn’t take a genius to figure out why Kevin was standing so close to Ben right now; nor would you have to be a rocket scientist to interpret that blush adorning Pierce’s face. And for these two, little things like that were asking for a fight.

Pierce crossed his arms over his chest. “That’s right _Kevin_. I _would_ be a very useful addition to your team. So you can just back off.”

Kevin growled and his fists clenched. He was ready to fight. Gwen laid a hand on his arm.

“Kevin, calm down.”

Ben put himself between the two hostile teens, giving them both a glare that stopped them in their tracks. “Both of you, stop it now. Kevin, I don’t care what your problem is; he’s joining our team so you’ll just have to deal with it. And Pierce, you’re supposed to be a levelheaded guy. Helen told me you always kept your team together. So you shouldn’t be picking fights either. Understand?”

Kevin and Pierce grumbled, but they agreed.

Later on, however, they made it clear to each other that the battle was far from over.

“You so much as _look_ at him the wrong way and I’ll turn you into my own personal pincushion!” Pierce hissed.

“I’ve got a five-year claim on him, porcupine,” Kevin spat back. “So if anyone’s gonna get their ass kicked for makin’ passes at him, it’s gonna be you!”

Pierce narrowed his eyes. “I’ll make him mine. I mean it. I’m not backing down.”

“Well, then.” Kevin smirked. “I guess this…means war.”

 

**Macaroni and Cheese**  
The smell of processed cheese is not a very romantic or enticing one. Unless you’re hungry, that is. But the smell wafting through the kitchen and to the control room somehow made Ben’s heart beat faster. The smell meant Kevin was home.

As he entered the kitchen, Kevin turned from the stove to smile at Ben.

“Macaroni and cheese,” he said, raising his mixing spoon. “Haven’t done this in a while, huh?”

“It has been a long time,” Ben agreed. He sat down at the kitchen table.

“Where’re the kids?”

“Asleep.”

“I’ll have to kiss ‘em good night when we’re done.” Kevin soon finished cooking and served the gooey, cheesy meal and sat down with Ben.

Ben smiled into the bowl, not really eating, just reminiscing. “Remember when you first made this? Twenty years ago?”

Kevin chuckled. “Yep. I wanted to surprise you when I came home by making you a romantic dinner. Rose petals, candles, everything.”

“But all you had was a box of macaroni and cheese.” Ben laughed at the memory. “But I was so happy to see you it didn’t matter to me one bit.” He and Kevin smiled warmly at each other.

“Who else but me would propose over macaroni and cheese?”

Ben chuckled. “And who else but me would say yes?”

Kevin leaned across the table and kissed him. “Had some cheese on your lip.” He started to sit back down, but Ben pulled him back for more.

“I think you might’ve missed some.” The kiss this time was deeper and filled with passion renewed after being separated for a long time. When Kevin pulled away, he smiled.

“Ben Tennyson, will you stay with me forever?”

Ben smiled, too. “Yes.”

Their macaroni got cold, but they didn’t mind.

It was their promises that mattered.


	9. Poke

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set 9. Featuring more Kevin in high school and some guy who doesn't like him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Everything in this set is phenomenally awkward.

**Poke**  
Ben glowered. “Something’s poking me.”

Kevin scooted away from him. “Sorry.”

 

**Silent Stakeout**  
“Remind me to thank Cooper about a _million_ times for this cloaking device,” Ben said with a giant grin on his face as he stared out the passenger side window. “I can’t believe we’re actually driving straight _through_ the compound.”

“Yeah, this is nice,” Kevin agreed. “And with the soundproof attachment, I could just sit here and rev the engine for hours and no one would notice.”

“Will you two stop fawning over the technology and pay attention to what’s going on?” Gwen snapped. “This is supposed to be a stakeout! Are you two even _trying_ to see what the DNAliens are working on?”

“ _I’m_ looking!” Ben insisted.

“What d’you want me to do?” Kevin asked. “I’m driving!” Gwen slumped back in her seat.

“Let’s just get this over with,” she mumbled.

The drive went quietly for a while until…

“Over there! They’re building something!”

“On it!” The tires squealed as Kevin turned to where Ben had pointed.

And no one heard a sound.

 

**Sweeney Todd**  
Kevin once asked him, “Can I be your Lucy?” Ben was totally confused. So Kevin showed him the movie.

All the references to serving people as food grossed him out more than the blood; but the music was pretty and he could understand what they were trying to say. The whole thing was a nice mix of romantic and psychotic. Despite the musical part, he had no trouble believing it was a very “Kevin” kind of movie.

At the end, he didn’t cry, but his heart hurt terribly and he certainly felt like crying. He and Kevin sat there and didn’t move even as the credits rolled.

Ben clutched Kevin’s hand. “Ask me again,” he said.

Kevin gave Ben’s fingers a squeeze and he leaned in a little closer to whisper the question in Ben’s ear.

“Benjamin…can I be your Lucy?”

Ben smiled and kissed the tip of Kevin’s nose. “Absolutely.”

 

**Not Quite According to Plan**  
When Julie had told her that Ben was acting strange, she’d just assumed that everything was going according to her plan and Ben was upset about Kevin taking Gwen to the dance. So she brushed it off. She knew that her cousin had a crush on Kevin—even if he didn’t know it yet.

But tying Kevin’s tie, telling him Gwen’s favorite flower, lending him a tux; Ben would _never_ do those things while in his right mind. It wasn’t that he couldn’t be useful or even that he couldn’t give good advice. It was that there was _no_ way he’d _ever_ help Kevin get ready for a date with someone else. He liked Kevin too much.

And then she learned that her perfectly good jealousy scheme…had been ruined by Big Chill and a bunch of larvae. Cute larvae, true; but they still put an abrupt end to a very good plan.

And she didn’t even get to go to her school dance.

Though it wasn’t too bad dancing with Kevin out in the middle of nowhere, with music playing from his car radio and necrofriggian larvae goo bubbles floating in the air. Kevin was even considerate enough to ask why she was _still_ in a bad mood.

She was considerate enough to answer, “Because you and Ben _still_ aren’t together.”

 

**Awkward Moment**  
“…he even tied my tie for me. And he gave me some really good advice. Oh, and last week he did this thing with his tongue that—” Kevin cut himself off immediately.

Gwen just stared at him.

 

**Assumptions**  
This Kevin guy looked like a punk. Those black clothes, those clunky boots, that obnoxious smirk. He was definitely the kind of guy that only cared about who his girlfriend was this week and what teams were playing in some sport or another on the weekend. He probably bullied nerds during passing periods and had the IQ of a hamster.

_‘I hope I don’t have to deal with this guy often.’_

“Kevin, there’s an open seat next to Jared.”

_‘Crap.’_

Kevin sat down in the open seat and stretched out his legs under the desk. He gave Jared a greeting nod and a short, “Yo.”

Jared gritted his teeth and responded with a curt, “Hi.” His annoyance must have shown on his face, because Kevin frowned.

“Uh…somethin’ the matter?”

“You’re the third meathead jock-type I’ve had to deal with this semester,” Jared answered. Kevin raised a brow.

“Really, now?” He didn’t look confused or angry or anything that Jared had expected. Just a little affronted, which he guessed anyone would be if they’ve just been called a “meathead.”

“Yeah,” he went on. “And for the record, I am _not_ letting you copy my homework, I am _not_ doing your homework _for_ you; and in the event we get stuck with a project together, you are to sit quietly and let me work so _I_ can get an A.” He paused. “And I _don’t_ want to hear about what girls you’re fucking. Got it?”

Kevin stared at him for a few seconds with that raised brow and then calmly stared ahead at the teacher. “Dude, you’ve got some serious issues.”

Two days passed relatively peacefully between the two of them. Jared didn’t talk to Kevin and Kevin didn’t talk to Jared.

Then one day after class, as Jared was still packing up his notes and Kevin was just shouldering his backpack, a brunette walked into the classroom. Jared recognized him as Ben Tennyson. Nice kid; they sat next to each other in English, and Jared liked him well enough. So he was surprised when Ben smiled at the brutish teen and asked, “Ready to go?” Why would a nice kid like him hang out with someone like this meathead?

Before he could stop himself, Jared blurted out, “You know each other?”

Ben turned a smirk on him and replied, “Yeah. I’m ‘the girl he’s fucking.’”

Kevin laughed out loud and threw an arm around Ben as they walked out the door.

Jared gaped.

Well, that took out the typical “new girlfriend every week” thing guys like him always had.

But he was probably still dumb as a rock.

 

**Assumptions: Physics Project**  
“Dude. That’s the wrong wire.”

Jared screamed in frustration—in his head. He was sure the teacher wouldn’t appreciate the noise in her classroom. “Stop calling me ‘dude.’ It’s annoying.”

Kevin sighed. “Well, then, _Jared_ , that wire you are currently attaching the battery to is the wrong one.”

Jared rolled his eyes. “It is not. This is the main wire, you idiot; it’s the one that’s going to get the motor started. Which, in case you didn’t know, is the thing that needs to work in order for the car to move.” He tried again to attach the battery to the wire and added, “And what did I tell you about projects?”

Kevin rolled his eyes now. He and Jared had been forced to do a project together involving building a working model car. The teacher had given them all the necessary parts and told them to figure it out. Jared was determined to do the project himself, as he was convinced that Kevin would either get in the way or mess everything up. Oh, and apparently he also had a brain the size of a pea. He couldn’t remember how that had been brought up.

Jared managed to successfully attach the wire and from there tried to start the car. The little toy didn’t do anything.

Kevin smirked. “I told you it was the wrong wire.”

Jared frowned and shoved the car towards him, annoyed. “Well, _you_ figure it out then,” he huffed.

Kevin detached the battery and then reattached it to another wire that Jared hadn’t even considered; nearer to the front wheels.

And he had the nerve to _explain_ it to him. “See, in a _real_ battery-powered car, you’d have been right; you definitely connect the battery to the engine. But this is a toy; so the main things that have to move are the wheels.” He started the car.

The thing moved. The damned thing moved.

The teacher passed by just as he’d finished and beamed. “Good work, Kevin!”

Jared looked off to the side.

There goes assumption number two. Right out the window.

He sighed. “Look…Kevin, I’m sorry. I’ve been making bad judgments about you that obviously aren’t true.”

Kevin shrugged. “So far, you’ve only been wrong about me being a moron and a skirt-chaser. If you think I’m an obnoxious jerk, though, then you’re absolutely right.”

Jared laughed kind of half-heartedly—he still felt bad. “I’m serious. Just because I’ve run into a lot of idiots in the past doesn’t mean I should just assume that you’re one.”

“Lot of experience with dickheads, huh?”

“I’ve sat next to one every year since middle school. The first time I ever sat next to a decent human being was…” He paused and turned a little red at the memory that surfaced.

Kevin grinned. “Cute girl?”

Jared shook his head. “Your boyfriend.” At that, the mischievous glint in Kevin’s eyes gave way to a softer one, purely loving.

“He’s really somethin’ else, ain’t he?”

And Jared had to think, _‘Kevin Levin isn’t such a bad guy after all.’_

 

**Fan Club**  
The poor little brunette girl had just wanted to check up on her grades with her teacher after school. Instead she stumbled upon a meeting for some really bizarre fan club involving two of the students at the school.

A skinny rainbow-haired girl in a denim jacket was pounding on the desk with a ruler. “Ladies! We have a new member!” She pointed the ruler at the unfortunate girl in the doorway.

“Um…n-no, I just—”

“Welcome!” the other girls chorused. There were about twelve of them.

“Please sit!” the odd-haired girl barked. Timid as she was, the poor little brunette slunk to a desk. “Now,” the club’s leader continued, “let us recite the club motto! Everyone! B-E-V-I-N!”

“B-E-V-I-N!”

“That’s our name for our two men!”

“That’s the name for our two men!”

“Every hug and every kiss!”

“Every hug and every kiss!”

“The Bevin fans will never miss!”

“The Bevin fans will never miss!”

The brunette had sunk very low in her seat by the time the entire room shouted out the finale of, “Bevin! Bevin! Bevineers unite!”

“Any new sightings?” the leader asked in what would have been a very business-like manner if it hadn’t been for the tinge of hope in it.

One girl raised her hand. “Ooh, ooh! I got a picture of Ben getting out of Kevin’s car this morning!” she said excitedly. She held out the mentioned photo and the rest of the club gathered around. The leader looked very pleased.

_‘Ben…and Kevin,’_ the little brunette thought, as she stared at the picture. _‘Why haven’t I heard of these guys?’_ She examined the picture again. _‘That kid’s face looks familiar, though…’_

“Thank you, Mallory,” the club leader said. “The picture will be placed in our club scrapbook. Anything else?”

“I have a picture, too!” another girl exclaimed. She held it out. It was a picture of just a black-haired guy smiling happily with his arm around the guy from the other picture.

_‘He looks familiar, too,’_ the brunette thought. But she couldn’t quite remember where she’d seen him. _‘Pretty sure I saw him and the other guy in the same place, though…’_

The club leader nodded. “Good work, Jessica! That one will go in our scrapbook as well.” And the poor, confused little brunette kept wracking her brain.

She kept picturing poster board along with these two. But the only time she’d seen poster board was the week before when her art teacher had asked her to get some from the art supply room.

And when she’d done that…

She squeaked. The club members looked at her.

She was blushing furiously as she said, “I just remembered…those were the two guys I saw making out last week in the art supply room…”

The whole club shrieked and started hounding her for details.

Her account of the incident went in the club journal.

 

**Rapunzel**  
“It doesn’t look…that bad,” Gwen said; her tone only half as reassuring as she’d intended thanks to the weird face she was making. Ben sighed through his bangs.

“It looks ridiculous,” Kevin said flatly. Gwen elbowed him in the ribs.

“Have you tried cutting it?” Gwen asked, knowing full well what the answer would be. Ben sighed again.

“My parents would kill me.”

Kevin stole Ben’s smoothie and took a sip (which amusingly went unnoticed since Ben couldn’t see anything through his hair. “How come they’re makin’ you grow out your hair, anyway?”

“Because ‘when you cut your hair, you’re really cutting away part of your soul,’” Ben recited dryly. “They’re driving me insane.”

Kevin laughed around the straw as he took another sip of the smoothie. “If they keep up this little philosophy of theirs, then someday I’ll be able to climb up to your bedroom window.” He laughed again. “Like Rapunzel.”

Gwen rolled her eyes. “Seriously, Kevin? _Rapunzel_?”

“Yeah. Or better yet—” The dark-haired teen set the smoothie down on the table and recited in a sing-song voice, “—Benpunzel, Benpunzel, let down your hair!” He proceeded to laugh some more—quite obnoxiously—until Ben had had enough and dumped the smoothie on Kevin’s head.

A grumble of, “Asshole,” could be heard as Ben walked away.

 

**Things Gone Unnoticed**  
Gwen and Julie were going to get Ben and Kevin together if it was the last thing they did.

They had all sorts of plans set up; most involving the two boys getting locked up somewhere or another, such as Kevin’s car or a supply closet.

They tried jealousy plots, in which one of them would go on a date with their respective boys to make the other one upset enough to do something about it. They tried dropping hints. They tried _double_ dates, just to get them in proximity of one another.

But no matter what they did, they never _once_ heard a love confession.

“We have to try harder,” Julie concluded. “They _obviously_ like each other, but for some reason we can’t make them _see_ it.”

“Maybe we need to try a more direct approach…” Gwen muttered, half to herself.

A few feet away from the scheming girls, Ben and Kevin had decided to have a lovely make-out session in the car.

“You think we should tell them…that we’re already dating?” Ben asked, panting as he tore his lips from Kevin’s.

Kevin nipped Ben’s bottom lip playfully. “Nah. Let ‘em think they’re the smart ones here. Girls like that.”

Ben chuckled. “Since when are we in the practice of pleasing women?”

Kevin ignored him and leaned in for another kiss. Ben cut it short.

“Think they’ll be a while?” he asked.

“Maybe,” Kevin answered.

They spent another fifteen minutes making out before Gwen and Julie headed back to the car. By the time they were buckled up in the back seat, Kevin and Ben were already in their respective places and had fixed their clothing.


	10. Reference

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set 10. This makes 100 drabbles so far.

**Reference**  
Kevin stood looking over the spray paints, struggling to remember which green was that perfect shade to use (his car had been entirely stripped of color thanks to the corrosive laser it had been hit with just two hours ago; the sight was devastating). The department store guy behind him was tapping his foot impatiently, wondering how long it could take a person to pick out green paint. They all looked the same to him.

But for Kevin, the shade had to be _exact_.

A short while later, Ben and Gwen walked up to him with smoothies in hand. After the first twenty minutes they’d gotten bored with waiting for Kevin, so they wandered away, hoping he’d be done by the time they got back.

No such luck. “You’re _still_ looking for paint?” Ben asked incredulously. “Kevin, you’ve been here an hour! Pick a green already!”

“My thoughts exactly,” the department store guy muttered.

“It’s gotta be the exact shade,” Kevin replied stubbornly. Then he waved his hand at Ben while still carefully analyzing the colors on the shelf. “Tennyson, c’mere a minute.”

“Huh?” Ben stepped forward. “What for?” Instead of answering, Kevin grabbed his face, and for the first time in an hour looked away from the paint to stare directly into Ben’s eyes. He studied them for several seconds and then turned around again, plucking a can of paint neatly from the shelf.

“Perfect,” he said. “All right, let’s pay and go.”

Relieved, the department store guy led Kevin to the checkout while Gwen and Ben stayed behind, totally stunned.

 

**Mysterious Object**  
Kevin turned the thing over in his hands, sparing a glance at Ben every few seconds.

With any luck, this thing was definitely something _fun_. He was grinning like an idiot just thinking about it.

“It looks like the thing Grandpa Max used to clean out his ears,” Gwen said, taking the object from Kevin. She pressed the button on top and acid came out, melting a hole through the floor.

“Aww.” Kevin was disappointed. Gwen gave him a disapproving look.

“Pervert. Should I tell Ben his boyfriend’s thinking stupid things again?”

Kevin chuckled. “Nah, he already knows. Right, Ben?”

Ben rolled his eyes. “Yeah, whatever; keep your kinks to yourself. You know I don’t like toys.”

Kevin pouted. “You’re no fun.”

Gwen just sighed and shook her head.

 

**Sympathy**  
Kevin pulled Ben to the side just before they entered the space station. The concern in his eyes was shielded carefully with scrutiny, but Ben could see it anyway.

“Kevin, what’s wrong?”

“You sure you’re not just rushin’ into this?” he asked. Ben was confused.

“What do you mean?”

“I _mean_ , you’re really into helping this guy, and all you have to go on is his little sob-story.” Kevin was frowning. “This is just like what happened with Mike Morningstar—only this time, you’re the one that’s in the most trouble. And that’s…” Kevin trailed off.

Ben prodded him. “That’s…?”

“That’s worse for me,” Kevin finished quietly.

“Kevin…” Ben sighed. “I’ll be okay, I promise.”

This didn’t reassure Kevin at all. Actually, it just made him angry. “Don’t make promises you can’t keep.”

“Look, I know what Sim’s going through, okay? Since Grandpa Max left, I’ve had to be a hero on my own.” He seemed to deflate a little and Kevin had trouble keeping up a stern face. “And nobody seems to notice what I’m going through. Even my own grandmother only cared about Gwen.” The last part was in an irritated grumble.

“Except the monkey.” Kevin raised a brow. “And, as I recall you saying, I should be able to relate too, right?”

Ben looked down. “I just wanted you to come with me.”

Kevin laughed a little and titled Ben’s chin up with one hand. “I’d go anywhere you asked me to. You know that.” He smiled. “Don’t be so down. You and I both know you’re a hero—no matter what your grandma says.” That managed to get a small smile out of Ben. “Look, I still don’t quite trust that monkey—but I’ve got your back. You do your thing, and if the monkey tries anything, I’ll knock him into next week. ‘Kay?”

Ben kissed him. He felt better already.

“Okay.”

 

**Arms**  
“You never had trouble figuring out how to use your arms before,” Ben said. “That’s what all the girls say.” He was smirking and Gwen was dreading the inevitable comeback statement. She could practically _hear_ Kevin’s returned smirk and she mentally started a countdown.

_‘Three…two…one…’_

“What girls? There’s only you, Ben.”

Gwen sighed. _‘So predictable.’_

 

**Protective**  
Kevin watched the Arachnachimp run off with suspicious eyes. He didn’t trust that monkey.

_‘Right behind you my ass,’_ he thought, running in the direction Simian had come from.

Sure enough, there was Ben, laying on the floor, half-conscious. Kevin ran up to him and the younger boy turned his unfocused eyes on the worried teen above him.

“Kevin…”

“I knew that ape couldn’t be trusted!” he growled. “When I get my hands on that little fucker, I’ll—”

“Kevin, calm down, I’m okay,” Ben assured him, sitting up and rubbing his head. “It’s okay. We can just let him go.”

“Let him _go_?!” Kevin cried incredulously. “Ben, he _attacked_ you! And he’s got the crystal!”

Ben stood up with Kevin’s help. “One, I _told_ you I’m _fine_. And two, he doesn’t have the crystal.” He held up the mentioned object with a smirk. “ _I_ have it.”

Kevin smirked too. “Sneaky.”

Ben jerked his head in the direction Simian had gone. “Come on, let’s go find Gwen.” He took off running.

“I still wanna get my hands on that stupid monkey,” Kevin grumbled as he followed Ben.

After all, nobody hurts his Benji and gets away with it.

 

**Shake Your Booty**  
Under the dire circumstances, Ben knew he shouldn’t be thinking about this. But with all the time he spent with Kevin these days, his brain just went to it automatically. So he shook his butt, tossing all sorts of things out of his pockets, thinking all the while that he wished Kevin was here to see it.

After all, Kevin would _definitely_ get a kick out of watching Ben shake his ass.

 

**A Favor**  
“Kevin, can you do something for me?”

“You name it, Gwen; I’ll do it.”

“Ben.”

 

**Wuv**  
“So.” Ben smiled slyly at his boyfriend. The smile was so incredibly sneaky-looking that it kind of gave Kevin the creeps. Just a bit.

“So…?”

“So…” Ben repeated, “…‘I think he wuvs you’?”

Kevin’s eyes widened. “No. Ohhh no. I know where you’re goin’ with this, Ben, and I ain’t—”

Ben scooted closer to Kevin on the bed, making the older boy back away. “I think someone else ‘wuvs’ me too, Kevin.”

Kevin kept backing away until he was against the wall, totally trapped. “Don’t go there, Ben, I’m warning you…” He trailed off lamely, cheeks flushing red as Ben got close enough to set his forehead against Kevin’s.

“Who is it that ‘wuvs’ me, Kevin?”

There was a pause.

Then Kevin looked down and mumbled, “I wuv you.”

 

**Dirty**  
“No, don’t put that in your mouth!” Gwen scolded the giant alien infant. “You don’t know where it’s been!”

Kevin snorted. “You should be saying that about the interior. I know Ben and I have left some traces in there…”

Ben blushed. “Kevin!” Gwen scrambled to find some ears to cover on the baby while simultaneously glaring at Kevin disapprovingly.

“Not in front of the baby!” she hissed.

“The baby ate my car!” Kevin protested.

The baby just picked up her collected stop sign and giggled.

 

**Feeling Neglected**  
Kevin sighed. Ben was angry.

“Look, I dunno what I did to make you mad,” Kevin said, a little frustrated. “You gotta tell me what I did wrong or I can’t fix it.”

“I’m not mad,” Ben answered quietly. For once, Kevin was inclined to believe that. He never believed it when Gwen said it; but Ben sounded so miserable and low that Kevin knew he couldn’t have been mad. He was upset, though; and since he wouldn’t so much as look at the older boy, Kevin had to assume he was the root of the problem.

“So what’s wrong?”

“You were awfully worried over Gwen today,” Ben answered. Kevin made a face.

“Um, yeah. She got grabbed by a giant monster; was nearly blown to bits by DNAliens; why wouldn’t I be worried?”

Ben shrugged. “It’s just…you’ve never worried over me like that. Never told me, ‘be careful’ or anything.” He turned around, finally looking at Kevin; but with an unpleasant frown. “You like her, don’t you?”

Kevin shrugged. “Yeah, I like her.”

Ben’s face fell. “You’d admit it? Just like that?”

“Yup.” Kevin leaned down and gave Ben a kiss, and Ben had to smile in spite of himself. “I love you, though.”

“Then how come I don’t get ‘be careful’ like Gwen does?”

“Because _you_ weren’t the one stupid enough to get hypnotized by Mister Sparkles just cuz you were mad at me.”

Ben made a face. “Point taken.”


	11. Don't Argue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set 11.

**Don’t Argue**  
Gwen tapped her foot impatiently.

Kevin raised a brow. “Excuse me?”

“I said, you have ten seconds to walk out of this garage and go tell Ben you love him,” Gwen answered in a stiff, authoritative tone. Kevin frowned. He didn’t like to be bossed around.

“And if I refuse?”

“Shall I remind you of the battle in the cave, Kevin?” Gwen asked smoothly, a ball of energy forming ominously in her palm.

Kevin gulped.

“I’ll, uh…just go talk to Ben, then…”

He practically _sprinted_ out of the garage.

Gwen smiled to herself.

 

**Playing House**  
After four hours being holed away in Kevin’s garage, the baby had already assigned everybody roles. Gwen said she could tell mainly by hand gestures and expressions; since the alien couldn’t talk both Ben and Kevin were totally in the dark.

“I’m Aunt Gwen,” she told the boys, “and you two are Mama and Papa.”

Ben looked shocked while Kevin seemed to be mulling something over in his brain; and he asked, “Which one of us is Papa?”

“You are.”

Kevin grinned. “Then I’m good.”

Ben stared at him.

 

**Health Class**  
“Didn’t you pay attention in Health class?”

As soon as the words left her lips, Gwen slapped her hand over her mouth. Judging by the smirk on Kevin’s face, she’d just allowed for something stupid to be said.

Kevin wrapped an arm around Ben and replied smoothly, “I paid attention to the important parts.” Ben blushed.

_‘God damn it,’_ Gwen thought.

 

**Keeping in Check**  
“Hold up a sec, guys. I’ve got a couple things to run by Darkstar here.”

Gwen gave Kevin a warning look. “Don’t take too much time, Kevin. We have to get going.”

Kevin pulled Michael off to the side, the masked one grumbling a bit to himself. He knew what was coming.

“So, Mikey-boy, how’ve my Null Void buddies been treatin’ ya?” he asked. He was grinning, but there was a deadly glare in his eyes.

Michael pulled up his sleeve. There were quite a few gouges in the skin that he obviously hadn’t been able to heal. “Very well, thank you.”

“Glad to hear it.”

Darkstar sighed in aggravation. “Get to the point, Levin. I know this is about Ben Tennyson.”

“Fine.” Kevin lost the grin and moved to stare down the energy vampire. “Ben’s got a world to save, and we are just his backup. You follow his orders and you don’t give him any shit about it.”

“I’m free now, you know. What makes you think you can hurt me?”

A comment like that wasn’t going to cut it with Kevin. He thrust his elbow into Darkstar’s throat and pushed back, effectively slamming him against the wall. Suddenly terrified, Darkstar struggled to remove Kevin’s arm from his throat.

“Do whatever Ben tells you to do, or I am going to chain you to my bumper and drag you halfway across the country. You got me?”

Darkstar nodded shakily. Kevin let him go and impassively watched him gasp for breath.

“Good. Now let’s get goin’.”

 

**Backseat**  
“What are you doing?”

Michael’s hand paused at the door handle. “I’m not going to fly all the way to the base. I’d have to use up my power.”

“I don’t wanna drive you!”

“Kevin.” Gwen gave him a disapproving look. “He has to come with us.”

Kevin frowned. “Fine.” He got in Darkstar’s face. “But you’d better keep your paws off Ben.”

Darkstar rolled his eyes behind his mask. “I’m not interested in men.” Kevin glared. “But I’ll keep my hands to myself.”

“Good.” Kevin got in the driver’s seat and slammed the door. Michael got in back next to Ben.

But he tried to stay on the very far end of the car. Even if Kevin was being ridiculous, he really didn’t want to bring any trouble on himself.

Kevin Levin was incredibly violent when it came to Ben.

 

**Taking Orders**  
Michael lowered himself to the ground, dying inside to just say, “Fuck you; I’ll drain them if I want to!” But a part of him (particularly the part that wanted to stay alive) said to listen. So he listened to Ben.

“You’re lucky that Levin has a death threat on my head,” he told the hero, “or I would take you down right now.”

Ben cocked his head in confusion. “Huh? Kevin?”

“It’s not important.”

Michael went to blast more aliens. Ben remained confused.

 

**New Features**  
“So this car is equipped with a lot of stuff, huh?” Ben asked, leaning over the two front seats. Kevin glanced at him in the rearview mirror.

“Yep.” Kevin smirked. “Even added a few…special features to it.”

Ben raised a brow. “Like?”

“I’ll show you later.”

But later, the car was totaled. Kevin was very upset.

“And I didn’t even get to use the ‘honeymoon’ feature…”

 

**Panic**  
His heart stilled. He could swear his world was ending. In that single instant, everything they had worked for amounted to nothing in his mind.

Ben’s head had been lopped off by a Highbreed.

And another second later it grew back; and Kevin’s heart was beating again, and the world wasn’t ending, because Ben was okay.

Then Gwen went full Anodite, and Kevin panicked again. He’d almost lost Ben, his whole world. He couldn’t lose her too. She was his best friend.

“Come back to me,” he told her. “Please. I can’t lose you.”

But he couldn’t bring himself to tell her that it was his feelings for Ben that made him want her to be happy. The look in her eyes stopped all words.

So he just hugged her and hoped he’d be able to tell her how he felt when the time was right.

 

**Azmuth**  
Kevin felt a tug on his pant leg, and he looked down to see a very disgruntled Azmuth looking up at him. He knelt down to the Galvan’s level, looking around to make sure nobody was looking. This seemed like a private sort of matter.

“What is it, short-stuff?”

“Listen well, boy,” Azmuth started, “because I’m only going to say this once: you must protect Ben Tennyson. If he dies, humanity is lost.”

Kevin made a face. “You don’t have to tell me that. I’d protect him even if he wasn’t wearing the Omnitrix.”

Azmuth nodded. “I know. Your feelings for him have not gone unnoticed.” He smiled. “By more than just myself, I’m sure.”

Kevin turned pink for a minute, but he brushed it off. “So, then, why’re you tellin’ me to do something I’d do already?”

“Because I know your general method of protecting him,” the Galvan said matter-of-factly. “You sit back and let him do whatever he thinks he needs to and then run to his rescue when things go bad. I’m telling you now to prevent things from going bad. If you let him go too far, he will die and you won’t be able to do anything about it. Understand?”

Kevin looked back at Ben, who was talking with Alan, a serious look on his face. Kevin turned back to Azmuth.

“I got it. I won’t let him do anything stupid.”

Azmuth smiled. “That’s all I ask.”

 

**No Worries**  
“I am watching out for my Omnitrix,” Azmuth said stubbornly. “I am not worried about Ben.”

Gwen smirked knowingly at him. “Sure you’re not.”

“I don’t need to be.” Now it was Azmuth who was smirking. “That’s Kevin’s department. Isn’t it, Kevin?”

The back seat of the ship was suddenly very quiet, and Azmuth knew there must have been a very embarrassed look on Kevin’s face.


	12. Just One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set 12.

**Just One**  
As they were walking back after the auto-show, Gwen stopped him on the sidewalk. She had a very purposeful look on her face.

“What’s the matter, Gwen?”

“I want to ask you for something,” Gwen answered. She looked a little bashful now; and Kevin was getting concerned. “Just one thing.”

“You’re scarin’ me, Gwen,” Kevin said, his brows furrowing. “What is it?”

Gwen hesitated. “It’s…something you might not be comfortable giving…”

Kevin groaned. “Just ask!”

“A kiss.”

Silence.

“What?”

“Just one kiss,” Gwen said in a rush. “That’s all I ask.”

Kevin didn’t say anything for a moment. Then, “Gwen, I…I don’t know if I should…”

“Please?”

Kevin couldn’t say no to that face. He leaned down a bit and gave her a brief kiss. But it was enough to make her happy.

“So, uh…does this mean you want us to officially be goin’ out, now?”

Gwen sighed happily and shook her head. “No, no, of course not. I already know you like Ben.”

Kevin blinked. “How…how’d you know that?”

Gwen gave him a look. “Kevin, really. You should really think about the way you look at him. It’s incredibly obvious. I’m amazed _he_ hasn’t figured it out.”

“So what was the kiss for?”

“I do still like you,” Gwen admitted. “I just wanted a little something for my trouble before I moved on. Now I’m good.” She smiled. “Now come on; let’s go home.”

Kevin gaped at her retreating back for a moment before following.

Damn, she was good.

 

**Worn Out**  
“Ben, you really need to relax. You passed out, like, three times during the battle.”

Ben frowned at Kevin. “I’m fine.”

“You’re usin’ the Omnitrix like crazy,” the older boy said. “You’ll wear yourself out.”

“Stop being such a worrywart.” Ben fiddled with the dial on his Omnitrix. He wanted to try out another alien.

Kevin clamped a hand around Ben’s wrist. “No. No more. You’ve used up too much energy already. And again, I remind you, you passed out three times.”

Pouting, Ben jerked his arm away from Kevin. “I’m _fine_.”

Kevin sighed. “You leave me no choice, Ben.” And before Ben could utter a single word of protest, Kevin had scooped him up in his arms and was walking towards Ben’s bedroom. Ben wriggled around in his grasp.

“Kevin! Put me down!”

“Nope. If you’re so intent on wearing yourself out, then we’re gonna do it the right way.”

Ben stilled in Kevin’s arms.

Five minutes later, Gwen paid a visit to Ben’s house, only to be scared away by a lot of loud moans and thumps from her cousin’s bedroom.

 

**The Last to Know**  
Frank Tennyson smiled a little behind his newspaper at the cheerful sound of his daughter bidding someone a good night. That someone, of course, could only have been Kevin Levin. He’d picked her up earlier that afternoon for what he could only assume was a date.

“I’m home, Dad!” Gwen called from the doorway. Frank lowered his paper and smiled knowingly at her as she entered the living room.

“How was your date?” he asked.

Gwen gave him a rather odd look. “Um…I wasn’t on a date, Dad. I was just with Ben and Kevin.”

Frank frowned. So it wasn’t a date. “But I thought that boy asked you out…?” His daughter shook her head.

“Where have you _been_ , Dad? Kevin and I cleared that up _months ago_. He only thinks of me as a friend. He asked _Ben_ out three weeks ago.”

Frank looked startled. His daughter just continued to stare at him strangely.

“Uncle Carl was talking about it when he visited yesterday. Did you actually miss that?”

Frank turned his stunned expression on the carpet, as though it would suddenly provide all the answers. “I…I guess I did.”

Gwen sighed. “Daddy, you’re hopeless.” She kissed his cheek. “I’m going to bed, now. Good night.” She went to her room. Frank sat there, staring at the carpet.

His wife passed him by and noticed his frozen face.

“Dear, what’s wrong?” she asked him. He looked up at her.

“Honey, did you know that…that our nephew is dating that Kevin Levin kid?”

His wife blinked at him. “Um…of course I did. Didn’t you?”

Frank looked down at the floor again.

_‘Why I am I always the last to know everything?’_

 

**Impressions**  
“You _guys_!” Gwen harshly slammed the front door of Kevin’s apartment, startling them both.

“Geez, Gwen; break my door down why don’tcha!” Kevin shouted.

Ben frowned at her. “Seriously, what’s wrong?”

Gwen snatched up the TV remote from the coffee table and switched on Kevin’s TV. She flipped through a couple hockey games and an infomercial to get to the news. The anchorwoman on the screen appeared to be in front of Kevin’s apartment building.

“…neighbors have reported seeing Ben 10 visiting his partner’s apartment several times, and ascertained that they appear to be very close. It is still uncertain whether love is blossoming…” Gwen switched off the TV and glared at her cousin and friend.

“See? People are starting to think you’re a couple!” she hissed. “And it’s all because you keep giving everybody the wrong impression!”

A thoughtful expression fell over Ben’s face. “What? How are we giving anybody a wrong impression?”

Gwen smacked her forehead. “Do you two even see yourselves right now?”

Ben looked up at Kevin where the other boy had pinned him and had not long ago been mercilessly tickling him. It was obviously quite a compromising position.

They looked at Gwen and shrugged. “So what’s the huge deal?” Kevin asked. Gwen’s expression deadpanned.

“Are you serious?” She sighed. “Kevin, yesterday you threw Ben over your shoulder and carried him to your car like that. In public. Reporters were everywhere.”

“And I ask you again,” Ben continued, “how are we giving anybody a wrong impression?”

Gwen just stared at him.

Then she sighed again. “It’s official,” she said in a defeated tone, “you two really are that dense.” She turned around. “I’m going home.”

She walked out the door. Kevin and Ben looked at each other again.

“Think we should tell her that we are a couple?”

“Nah. Let her figure it out on her own.”

 

**Batman**  
Ben stared up at the sky in disbelief.

Kevin was laughing.

Gwen just shook her head. “A green hourglass in the sky. Ben, I think that’s your cue to go hero.”

Ben kept staring.

Kevin kept laughing.

Ben finally “huh”ed loudly. “Wow. That’s incredible,” he said.

Kevin’s laughter died down to light chuckles. “The fact that you’ve turned into Bellwood’s Batman? Yes, it is incredible. Maybe you should start wearin’ tights.” He grinned at the thought.

Ben smacked him upside the head. “Shut up, you pervert.” Then he turned into Jetray and flew off.

Gwen was staring at Kevin. He glared back.

“What? I think he’d look hot in tights.”

Gwen shook her head.

 

**Over Coffee**  
Frank awkwardly tapped his coffee mug and stared at his impressively calm brother across from him. Carl sipped his coffee in the relaxed manner you wouldn’t expect to find in a man that was having this particular conversation.

“Then he said they’d started dating,” the story finished. “I tell you, Sandra and I were surprised; but we were certainly proud of him for telling us.”

“And you’re okay with this?” Frank asked. His brother gave him a questioning look. “I mean, are you okay with your son being…?” Frank trailed off, unsure of how to finish.

Carl set down his mug with a thoughtful expression. “Well,” he said after a moment, “why shouldn’t I be?” He sipped his coffee again. “Besides, if I’m going to have a problem with his preferences, then it’s going to be about his taste in men.” Carl made a face. “Kevin Levin. Like my wife says, that boy’s a ruffian.”

Frank stared.

Then he laughed.

“Y’know, Carl,” he said, “I’m really glad we got to talk.”

 

**The ‘Honeymoon’ Feature**  
“Well, Kevin,” Cooper said proudly, the glow of his eyes fading, “it’s all fixed.”

Kevin grinned. “Cooper, man, I owe you big.” He clapped a hand on the smaller boy’s shoulder. “You fixed everything?”

Cooper nodded. “Everything,” he answered with a sly smile. “You can use that ‘honeymoon’ feature now.”

“Ohh, _stoked_!” Kevin rushed to the front seat of his car and scanned the dashboard for the right button. As soon as he found it, the back seat completely unfolded and rearranged into what looked like a canopy bed. A drawer popped out from the bed frame containing bottles of wine, champagne glasses, and the ever-important lube.

“This is great. I can’t wait to try this out.”

Cooper cleared his throat. “Um, our deal…?”

“Huh? Oh, right.” Kevin pulled out his phone and dialed Gwen’s number. “Hey, Gwen? It’s Kevin. You got a date tonight. Yeah. Seven.” He hung up and looked at Cooper. “And I suppose you need me to drive you?”

Cooper shook his head. “Nah.” He gathered a bunch of spare parts to form into his own method of transportation. “You enjoy your night with Ben.”

He left. Kevin looked again at the spread out ‘honeymoon’ feature.

“Oh, I will.”

 

**Winter Formal**  
When Gwen showed up at Winter Formal with a blonde on her arm, her friends were surprised. The stories they’d all heard were about a tall, muscular, dark-haired manly man. The typical tall, dark and handsome. Not this short blonde kid.

One of her closest friends put a hand on her shoulder. “Um…hey, Gwen, whatever happened to your mystery guy?”

Gwen smiled sheepishly. “He fell in love with my cousin.”

Then she walked off with Cooper and enjoyed her Winter Formal while her friends thought about her response.

“Hey,” one of them said after a while, “isn’t Gwen’s cousin a guy?”

 

**Confronting the Past: From Me to You**  
“You look familiar.”

Kevin smiled into curious green eyes. There was an innocence in them that he hadn’t seen in a long time.

“That’s good to hear,” he said. The ten year old boy in front of him cocked his head in confusion.

“Why? Do we know each other?”

“Sort of,” Kevin answered. “We’re not…really on good terms right now.”

The boy frowned. “You look…sad,” he told Kevin.

“I’m sad I can’t fix things,” Kevin said after a pause. He knelt down at the puzzled boy in front of him. “I’ve got something to tell you, Ben. When I see you again, I’m going to make up for all the bad things I did. Okay?”

Ben looked surprised. “Okay, now I have to know who you are. You know my name!”

Kevin simply smiled. “See you in a few years, Benji.”

As he walked away, he heard Ben’s faint whisper, “Kevin?”

 

**Confronting the Past: From You to Me**  
Kevin flexed his Diamondhead arm, forming the crystals into a sharp point. A fire blazed in his opposite Heatblast hand. He was prepared to kill.

He didn’t know how this could be possible, but Kevin would _never_ mistake those green eyes for anyone else’s.

“Had a growth spurt overnight, Benji?” he snarled. “It doesn’t matter. I’m still gonna take you out.”

But this Ben Tennyson didn’t just look older; he obviously was more mature. Instead of a sharp comeback and a reach for the Omnitrix, the only thing Kevin got out of this boy was a soft smile.

“You’re such a tough guy. Then again, I knew that wasn’t going to change.”

Surprised, Kevin lowered his Heatblast arm, the flame going out. He stood still as Ben walked towards him, still smiling.

“What’re you bein’ so friendly for?” he growled, even through his shock. His anger bubbled up again and he raised his Diamondhead arm. “I still wanna kill you!”

Ben ignored him, surprising him once again; and putting his hands on Kevin’s face.

“It’s okay. You can wanna kill me all you like.”

_“Genetic anomaly detected_. Should we attempt to repair?”

“What the—”

“Yes.”

There was a flash of green light and a moment of pain, and then suddenly…Kevin was normal again. He gazed at his own pale hands in awe, forgetting the tanned ones still gently holding his face.

“There’s my Kevin.”

Old feelings, both good and bad, resurfaced as Kevin looked up at the older boy’s face. The smile there was suddenly much more…beautiful when he looked at it now.

“Ben…”

Ben leaned down and kissed his forehead. “See you in a few years, Kev.”

He left.

Kevin’s face felt hot.

He hoped “a few years” wasn’t too long from now.


	13. Let it Go

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set 13. Featuring more Sky High, a Newsies AU, and a Gargoyles AU. By the way, I believe Kevin's Gargoyle name is pronounced 'cow-im-heen.' Very light emphasis on the 'heen.'

**Let it Go**  
Warren bashed his head against the lunch table. Repeatedly.

“You can totally tell they’ve done it,” Magenta said, using her fork to point at the couple at the table across from them. “The way Kevin touches him now—look.”

Layla’s face suddenly looked like a tomato. “Oh my God…is his hand on Ben’s _thigh_?”

Was Warren ever going to eat his lunch in peace?

Every fucking _day_ …

“Aw, come on, that doesn’t prove anything,” Zach said with a roll of his eyes. “It’s more proof that Levin _wants_ to do it.”

“Like he’d actually wait this long,” Magenta countered.

“You have a point—”

“Oh for _God’s sake_!” Warren cried. “Nobody cares whether they’ve _done it_ or not!”

The whole lunchroom suddenly went completely silent. Everyone was staring at him. He was amazed his whole head hadn’t set on fire.

He lowered his face to the lunch table again and mumbled his boyfriend’s name.

Will was smirking. He could tell. “Yes, baby?”

“Do me a favor and throw me out the window.”

 

**Newsies**  
“Extra! Group suicide off the Brooklyn Bridge! Read all about it!”

Ben rolled his eyes at Kevin. “It was only a bunch of squirrels. And it was an accident.”

“Hey, you wanna sell papes, Benji, you gotta make things interesting!” Kevin answered with a grin. “We’re almost done, anyway. Then we can get back early and…you know.” His grin got a touch of lewdness then, and Ben blushed. He pulled his cap low over his face to hide it.

“Shut up,” he mumbled.

They finished their rounds, with only three papers left between them. Not a bad run for finishing early. Then, they headed back to the lodge, holding hands and grinning to themselves. They didn’t get a lot of alone time, since the other newsies were always around. But this time, they figured they’d finish early, and have the place all to themselves.

Apparently, they weren’t the only ones with that idea.

“Jack…come on…the boys will be coming back soon…they’re not stupid, they’ll know something’s—”

Kevin and Ben peered around the corner. David Jacobs, the one and only Walking Mouth, had just been silenced by Jack Kelley. Well, Jack Kelley’s lips, to be more precise.

Speaking of his lips, they were trailing down David’s neck now.

“Ah…Jack…”

“Don’ worry, Davey. We got the place to ourselves. S’why we finished early, remember?”

“I know, but…”

“Jus’ relax.”

Bright as twin strawberries, Ben and Kevin slunk away from the corner and the…erm…private moment.

“Next time,” Kevin whispered, “we’re going to have to finish even earlier.”

 

**Gargoyles: Goliath**  
Goliath found the new additions to his clan a little odd. He had never known two male Gargoyles to court each other as these two did. Perhaps he was old-fashioned, but that sort of thing was just never done.

It could have been something they picked up from the humans. Elisa had once told him that human men sometimes acted this way. But even for humans, she’d said, it was rarely seen.

He supposed it didn’t matter anyway. Love was love, and he would be foolish to deny it of anyone. He watched Beniamin shelter himself within Caoimhín’s wings and smiled to himself, a little sadly, remembering the love he’d once had with Demona.

Then the sadness left his eyes as Elisa came up the steps, holding onto the love he had with her.

“What is it, Elisa? It is nearly dawn.”

Elisa simply smiled and kissed his cheek. “Just wanted to wish you a good day’s rest.”

With a kiss to return hers, Goliath stepped up onto his place on the turret. Out of the corner of his eye, he watched the new Gargoyles kiss each other, and then go to their places as well.

Goliath faced the sun, and his smile froze on his stone figure.

He dreamt of love.

 

**Gargoyles: Brooklyn**  
He was the one that found them. Had he known what they were like, he didn’t know what he’d have done. The sight of them, curled in each other’s warm embraces was an uncomfortable reminder of the fact the he still had no one to hold like that.

“Come with me,” he’d said. “My clan will welcome you. I promise.”

Hypocrite.

“After all the commotion I almost forgot to thank you.”

Sitting where he was, the first thing Brooklyn saw was a pair of long, tan legs. Before even looking up into vibrant green eyes, he knew that Beniamin had come to speak to him. He moved over a little on the ledge and at once, the other male plopped down next to him, tail swinging happily.

“There’s no need to thank me. Any Gargoyle would have done the same.”

“Maybe.”

“You don’t think so?”

“Plenty of others found us. You were the first to offer us your home,” Beniamin replied. Brooklyn was surprised.

“How could that be?”

“A curse.” Despite the dismal words, the smile on the young Gargoyle’s face was bright and playful.

“I see…” The first to offer any such kindness, and he’d all but rescinded it completely with his jealousy. He really was a hypocrite.

“Hey, now, don’t look sad.” Brooklyn’s eyes met sparkling green ones again. “I’m very grateful to you. I mean it. Thank you.”

“…you’re welcome.”

With that, Beniamin’s already bright smile brightened further, and the Gargoyle stood to rejoin his lover inside. Brooklyn watched him for a moment.

His physique was awfully similar to a female’s. And those eyes…

“Damn it, Brooklyn,” he cursed. Growling at himself he turned his gaze to the pale moon. He sighed. “Stop falling for the ones you can’t have.”

 

**Gargoyles: Lexington**  
Lexington quickly learned that Caoimhín was sort of a kindred spirit. They kept each other entertained with little challenges, seeing if one could outwit the other. Where Lexington could write up a full security program in ten minutes, Caoimhín could hack it in the same amount of time. Where Caoimhín could build any kind of weapon imaginable, Lexington could tell you exactly how it worked. 

But it was in the automobile department where they had the most fun.

They could spend hours in a garage together, tinkering with the parts, determining what they could add to make things go faster, or run for longer periods of time.

“D’you think we could make our own fuel?”

And of course, there were things like this, too.

“Hmm…” Lexington’s brow furrowed as he went into concentration mode, a well-known impish look crossing his face. “I bet we could. We could combine a few different kinds…I know!” He snapped his fingers. “We could go check out what kind of fuel Xanatos’s robots use!”

Caoimhín grinned. “Perfect! Let’s go!” They made their way to do so, but were stopped at the door by one very amused Beniamin.

“Having fun, guys?”

Lexington smiled to himself. “I’ll go on ahead, Cao. Meet me there in a few minutes, okay?” Then he scampered off down the hall by himself.

Kindred spirits or not, where Lexington’s first love was technology, Caoimhín’s was, and always would be, Beniamin.

 

**Gargoyles: Broadway**  
It was Broadway that had given Beniamin his first smoothie. Pineapple and mango. Start with something sweet; it made sense. And the other Gargoyle seemed to really enjoy it.

No…that was an understatement, actually. What kind of reaction is it when someone calls you a “life-giver”? Not only that but to say, “I have never known drink before this day”?

Broadway figured that maybe it hadn’t been such a great idea to introduce Beniamin to smoothies.

 

**Gargoyles: Angela**  
Caoimhín reminded her of her father. It wasn’t just the way he looked—his skin was the same stony grey, his hair the same charcoal black, his shoulders just as broad and strong—but also the way he acted. He was a true protector, and so he walked like one, spread his wings like one…held his lover like one.

Angela knew that Goliath had once held her mother this way; this loving, sheltering way that Caoimhín held Beniamin. It was beautiful, and yet somehow frightening. Beautiful because love always was, and frightening because if Caoimhín truly was like her father…then he would carry this love with all of his heart, and never even expect it to be returned.

It was a comfort, then, that when she looked at Beniamin, she saw nothing of her mother. Instead she saw the same blind devotion; an undying love.

Perhaps Beniamin was a little like her father as well.

 

**Gargoyles: Hudson**  
Hudson was the first to ask.

“If ye don’t mind me asking, lad…what is that charm that ye wear?”

Beniamin looked surprised for a moment. It had been weeks since he and Caoimhín were welcomed into Goliath’s clan, yet no one had thought to ask before now. They hadn’t wanted to pry, thinking the story behind it was painful and long-buried.

Hudson’s mind was not like the others’ in this regard. He knew when things were meant to be secret, and when stories were meant to be told. This charm was a story, a little painful, perhaps; but that was obviously in the past. Neither Beniamin nor his lover were shy about themselves.

“If ye’d rather not speak of it, I won’t trouble ye about it,” Hudson added after a moment. But as he’d thought, the lad was hiding nothing. He smiled and took a seat near the elder Gargoyle.

“It’s alright. You just took me by surprise. You’re the first one to ask.”

Hudson chuckled. “I just thought an old Gargoyle’s curiosity couldn’t be allowed to sit too much longer.”

Beniamin held up the charm in question, smiling openly. The charm was green and in the shape of an hourglass, wrapped around Beniamin’s left wrist like a bracelet. But of course it was no ordinary bracelet; there was magic in it.

“It was given to me by a wizard,” he said. “The wizard promised me that it would draw me to my true love and ‘allow us to be together for all time.’ Hence the shape.”

Hudson raised a wrinkled brow in interest. “So it worked.”

Beniamin laughed sheepishly. “Well…sort of. Not long after I received it, I found Cao…but it certainly wasn’t love at first sight. We hated each other.”

“Oh? Is that so? How did ye come to love each other, then?”

“We couldn’t avoid each other,” Beniamin answered, laughing again. “The charm kept bringing us back together. Eventually things just…clicked.”

“Clicked, eh?” Hudson was smiling again.

“Well…what can I say?” Beniamin replied, blushing. “He is my true love, after all.”

 

**Broken Up**  
Kevin wrapped a steel hand around Ben’s forearm and jerked the younger male off to the side. Gwen watched them, concerned; but in the back of her mind, she seemed to know it had to be done. There needed to be a confrontation, and it needed to happen now.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” Kevin hissed once they were out of Gwen’s sight.

“You’ve been pissy for weeks, all these snide comments—and let’s not forget the cocky attitude. This ain’t the Ben I know.”

Ben yanked his arm out of Kevin’s grasp. “Well, get used to it. You should know why I’m pissed off.”

Kevin sighed, and his mouth set in a grim line. “It’s because I chose Gwen.”

Ben didn’t answer. Kevin swore.

“Hey, don’t pin this on me. _You_ chose Julie. What was I supposed to do?”

“What makes you think I chose Julie?” Ben snapped. “I never said—”

“Don’t give me that shit; you almost kissed her.” Kevin paused. The memory stung; although it shouldn’t have as much as it did. He’d already known how Ben felt about the Asian girl.

Ben was glaring at the ground. “You said you would wait.”

“Only because you said you would try,” Kevin countered; but there was no fire to his argument. “And you know what? Bein’ around Gwen taught me somethin’ important: I _don’t_ owe you so much that I have to let you string me along while you have fun playin’ hero and datin’ pretty girls. I _do_ deserve to do what I want, and date someone who actually wants to be with me.” He paused a moment. “And to be honest, I like her. She was real understanding…y’know, about my feelings for you.”

Ben’s eyes widened. “You _told_ her?”

Kevin held his hands up defensively. “Hey, it’s not like she knows you know. I just told her my end of it…and she understood. I really appreciated that, y’know?”

Ben shifted uneasily. His anger was fading, along with all the silent authority he’d held in his demeanor for weeks. Suddenly he was back to where he had been when he’d put the Omnitrix on for the second time, and he had no idea what to do.

He _did_ like Julie…so this really shouldn’t hurt as much as it did.

“I still love you,” Kevin said softly. What a sad little consolation prize.

Ben shook his head. “Yeah…whatever.” He stiffly raised his arm and turned his Omnitrix to Jetray. “Tell Gwen I went home,” he added. Then he turned into Jetray and flew off.

Kevin sighed.

“Damn it, Ben…I just gave up on you.”

 

**Broken Up: Too Late**  
Ben knew it was his fault that Kevin had chosen Gwen. He just hadn’t paid enough attention; to Kevin’s feelings or his own. He’d saved the world, sure; but that had been the only thing on his mind…until it was all over. By then, he’d already lost everything else. Being a hero had pretty much always come first, so everything else got shoved to the side. His relationships, especially…

Things…hadn’t worked out with Julie. He hadn’t told Kevin that earlier. The mutant wasn’t the only one to feel jilted…a few days after the final battle with the Highbreeds, she’d given him a sad smile and told him that they could still be friends.

That probably wouldn’t have bothered him so much if he still had Kevin…but Kevin had already chosen Gwen. And who could blame him? She’d liked him for a long time, and was far more sure of her feelings than Ben was. Then again, it was easier for her to be sure. She was a _girl_ , for Pete’s sake.

Ben loved him, he knew it, he _loved_ him. But he’d fucked up.

And now it was too late.


	14. Wooden

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set 14.

**Wooden**  
Ben looked Kevin up and down. His gaze settled on the other man’s legs.

“So, um…am I gonna have to worry about splinters later?”

 

**The “Chosen” One**  
Gwen couldn’t stand it. Kevin was heartbroken.

It wasn’t just about his newly deformed skin; no, she knew better than that. Every time she went to kiss him, he turned her away for a bigger reason than just that. They couldn’t even have a simple movie night together, like a happy couple should. He wouldn’t hold her in his arms…

She was the one he had chosen, so he said. Lately her mind had taunted her with another word.

“You settled for me, didn’t you, Kevin?” she asked him.

“What?” Kevin seemed startled. “Gwen, what are you talking about?”

“I think your words were, ‘I’ve loved Ben for a while, but I’d rather date you.’” Gwen emphasized her words with air quotes. If Kevin knew her at all, he’d know she was annoyed. “Was that _true_ , Kevin? Or were you just on the rebound?”

Kevin scowled. Gwen could practically hear his blood boiling.

“What the hell is this, Gwen? All this time you’ve been bugging me to ask you out, I finally do and now you’re accusing me of using you?”

“You still want him,” Gwen said matter-of-factly. “He can be as full of himself as humanly possible, but you’d still want him.”

“I do _not_ want him!” Kevin snapped. “He turned me into _this_!”

“‘Ben can’t accept that,’” she countered, mocking him. “‘Don’t listen to him, Ben!’ And need I remind you that you _stayed_ to help Ben even when you _knew_ the Omnitrix was overloading. You still want him.”

Kevin sat down. He almost looked ready to cry. He was heartbroken.

Gwen couldn’t stand it.

“This is such bullshit,” Kevin murmured.

“Yeah,” Gwen said, sounding almost indifferent; but she was heartbroken too. “Yeah, it is, isn’t it?”

 

**The Friend**  
Julie couldn’t stand it. Ben was heartbroken.

She’d grown very close to Ben since she first learned his secret. She knew his moods almost as well as…well, almost as well as Kevin did. She couldn’t quite tell when he was lying, but she could interpret his moods well enough.

In an odd way.

As she approached her moody friend on the bench, she swiped his smoothie and took a small sip. “Hmm. Pineapple lemonade,” she noted solemnly. “You’re mad about something.”

Ben swiped his smoothie back with a frown. “I’ll never get how you know that. Not even Gwen can figure out when I’m mad these days.”

Julie sat down with a nonchalant shrug. “Mm, it’s a gift, I guess. Not that it got me anywhere in love.”

“That’s not fair, Julie,” Ben said with a frown.

“Neither is leading on both Kevin _and_ me, for weeks I might add,” Julie replied testily. “You broke my heart. And his.”

Ben turned his face away and slurped down more of his smoothie, only to stop short and hold a hand to his head. “Gah, brain freeze…”

Julie giggled. “That’s karma for you.”

“Yeah, right,” Ben muttered. “You know what they say about karma.”

Julie nodded. Ben slurped his smoothie.

“It’s a bitch,” they both said.

 

**The Team**  
Ben stared at his Omnitrix. What had happened to Chromastone? Well, “Who knows?” he sighed. “This thing’s busted.”

He approached his cousin…and the one he loved…and he held out his hand.

“But the team’s still working, right?” he asked.

Gwen put her hand on his. They both looked at Kevin.

“…Kevin?” Did he dare hope?

Kevin placed his hand on theirs, too, with a look to Gwen. “I was gonna,” he insisted.

_‘Well,’_ Ben thought, _‘it’s better than nothing.’_

Maybe he could somehow make things better between them. Little by little.

 

**Sumo Slammers**  
It wasn’t a date. No way. It was two guys going to see the new _Sumo Slammers_ movie (Kevin with one of those ID masks to disguise his mutated form, of course); sharing a mutual interest and maybe some popcorn. That was all.

Not a date.

At least, Kevin and Ben were content to call it that…until the heroes came on screen.

Ben squealed like a sugar-high preteen at a Jonas Brothers concert.

Kevin laughed and snuggled him and whispered, “You are so fucking cute.”

Ben sank into his seat and didn’t make another sound for the rest of the movie.

 

**The Closet**  
“Ow, Kevin, move your elbow!”

“I can’t _move_ at all, Ben, we’re locked in a fucking closet!” Kevin growled. “And don’t be such a baby.”

“Kevin, your elbow is made of _rock_ and it’s _digging into my side_!”

“Well, deal with it. Gwen’s not gonna be back for a while.”

Ben grunted and then fell silent.

Gwen had locked them in a closet together for one reason and one reason only: she wanted them to kiss and make up, literally. As much as she loved and wanted to be with Kevin, she didn’t want to be used as Ben’s substitute.

“I’m sorry, guys,” she’d said through the closet door, “but I needed to do this. You love each other so much, but you haven’t shown it. I’ll be back in an hour. Have everything sorted out by then.”

It was only fifteen minutes into that specified hour. Ben was already frustrated. Kevin just wanted to break something (namely the closet door, but he couldn’t build up enough momentum in here to either punch or kick through it).

A few more minutes ticked by. Left with nothing else to occupy themselves with, the boys had turned to their thoughts. Considering their current predicament, the only thing they could find to think about was the reason that Gwen had locked them in here.

Soon, those thoughts broke the heavy silence.

“So what if we love each other?” Kevin muttered. “We made our choices. We can’t go back.”

Ben didn’t speak for a moment. He didn’t want to get into this. But his heart sped up there in that cramped space and he knew he had to say something before he burst.

“Well…well, why not? You and Gwen are obviously no longer a couple…and Julie…” Ben trailed off.

Kevin sounded bitter as he spoke next. “What, don’t tell me you two broke up, too?”

“We never really went out,” Ben admitted. “I mean, I tried to take her places…but when she introduced me as her _boyfriend_ to one of her friends…I froze. That’s when she figured it out.”

Did Kevin dare to hope? “Figured out what?”

“That I was trying to be ‘the hero that gets the girl.’ I was lying to myself when deep down, what I really wanted to be was…well…yours.” Ben was grateful for the darkness of the closet. His face felt hot.

Kevin laughed awkwardly. “That’s real cheesy, Ben.” He swallowed. “But, uh…is it…is it true?”

“Yes,” Ben whispered. “I’m so sorry it took me this long to admit it. I’m sorry I hurt you. I’ve been a real jerk.”

“Yeah, well…it’s okay, now.” Kevin reached around in the darkness for Ben’s hand. When he found it, he clasped it tightly. “We can be together now…right?”

Ben smiled and gripped Kevin’s hand just as tightly. “Yeah. We can.”

When Gwen let them out of the closet, they were still holding hands.

 

**Cloaked**   
_Creak. Creak. Creak._

Gwen looked up from her magazine and did a scan around the area. She didn’t see anything.

_‘Probably the wind shaking a tree,’_ she thought, and went back to her reading.

A few seconds later, she heard it again. _Creak. Creak. Creak._ She looked up at the trees around her. None of the branches seemed to be shaking. She frowned, but ignored the noise, hoping it would go away.

No such luck.

_Creak. Creak. Creak._ “ _Ahn_!”

Gwen looked up a third time, startled. That was definitely not a tree. Trees didn’t go “ _ahn_.”

“ _Ah_! Kevin!”

_‘God damn it.’_ There was no sign of the car. How the hell…?

Gwen smacked her forehead.

“Earth to Kevin!” she yelled. “Your cloaking device does _not_ cloak sound!”

The noises stopped.

Gwen went back to reading her magazine.

 

**Pixies**  
“You asked if they were real, so I’m here to prove it,” Max Tennyson announced proudly. He whipped a handkerchief off of a small glass jar. Inside it could be nothing else but a pixie. It was pale blue and sparkling, with wide eyes and a pair of wings with colors to rival a butterfly.

Kevin peered at the tiny creature behind the glass. “Huh. So, what’s it do?”

“You ever read Peter Pan?” Max asked.

“I saw the play when I was a kid. Well, half of it,” Kevin said idly. “Had to leave partway through.”

Gwen looked at him. “What for?”

“Punched the kid next to me cuz he wouldn’t clap for Tinkerbell.”

Ben shook his head. “Only you.”

“Anyway,” Max interrupted, bringing them all back to the main topic, “pixies do thrive on positive emotions. To them, one happy thought is the equivalent of a full human meal. And if they touch you, they can actually make you fly.”

“Really?” Ben looked excited. “Can I try it?”

Kevin flicked Ben’s shoulder. “What’re you so excited about, you nerd? You can turn into things that fly already.”

Ben pouted, rubbing his sore shoulder. “Yeah, but _I_ wanna fly…”

“Well, so do I. I don’t have any powers that make me fly, do I?” Kevin knelt down so he was eye-level with the little pixie. “Okay, Tink, let’s see whatcha got.”

He opened the jar to let the pixie out and stared at it for a moment. It blinked at him.

Then it tapped his nose, and within seconds Kevin was floating up in the air.

“Cool!” Ben was grinning. “What did you think about?”

Kevin grinned back. “Oh, I think you know.”

Ben blushed. Gwen shook her head.

Max coughed. “Maybe I should put _you_ in a jar,” he muttered.

 

**A Futile Argument**  
“Look, you really shouldn’t have run down there,” Ben scolded. “You did remember that you’re part _rock_ , didn’t you?”

Kevin pouted; he hated being lectured. “Yeah, I remembered. So what? You were gettin’ trampled. That kinda took priority at the time.”

“Gwen could’ve come down to help me,” Ben insisted.

“Key word: ‘could’ve.’ Dunno what was up with her. In any case, she didn’t move; I did. Everything turned out all right, anyway, so I don’t see why you’re complaining.”

Ben sighed. “I worry about you.”

“Feeling’s mutual, Benji,” Kevin replied. “You done?”

Again, Ben sighed. He knew he couldn’t win this one. “Yeah, fine. I’m done.”

 

**Fourth of July**  
For the Fourth of July this year, Gwen wanted to do something special. Something different. Something exciting.

And, if possible, something that would totally embarrass Ben and Kevin.

“Hey, Moldy?” She smiled sweetly at the nutty rat-like creature. “Could you do me a favor? It involves explosions…”

The crazy dynamite-lover got a gleam in his eye. “Well, seein’ as you saved my herd and all, I guess I could stands ta do a little somethin’ for ya…”

Gwen whispered in his ear. Moldyworp seemed to get more excited the more he heard.

“Count me in!”

That Fourth of July, dear, crazy old Moldy provided the fireworks. He gave a loud whoop as he set off the last one.

Gwen smirked in satisfaction. Kevin rolled his eyes. Ben just looked like he wanted to hide.

The last of the fireworks was a giant pink heart surrounding the simple phrase, _Kevin Levin + Ben Tennyson 4ever_.

Moldy, of course, was happy enough to set off fireworks and offered to do them again next year.


	15. Gaydar Revisited

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set 15.

**Gaydar Revisited**  
Ben fiddled with the Omnitrix, his face scrunched into a frown. “I just don’t understand…why won’t it do what I tell it to?” He tapped the face curiously. “Is it broken?”

Kevin looked at Ben for a moment. “Hmm…lemme see.” He grabbed Ben by the shirt collar and kissed him.

Suddenly a mini-satellite popped out of the face and a mechanical voice repeated, _“Homosexual orientation detected. Homosexual orientation detected.”_

Kevin pulled out of the kiss. “Nope. S’workin’ fine.”

 

**They Call it “Bwen”**  
There he was, making his move again. An arm around the shoulders, a small quip about their height difference; Ben blushed and Kevin grinned, daring to steal a sip from Ben’s smoothie. Gwen’s blood started to boil. That was something she had never been able to get away with…curse Kevin and his “best bro” status!

“Um, Gwen? Your smoothie cup is broken…” Ben’s eyes roved over her hand in concern. “And there’s smoothie all over your hand…”

Gwen forced her angry thoughts to the back of her mind and smiled brightly at her adorable cousin. “Oh, my, is it? I’m sorry, will you go get me some napkins?”

Ben sighed. “Fine…I’ll be right back…” He got up.

Gwen waited until Ben was completely out of sight before she let her fury slip through again. In a flash she grabbed a very startled Kevin by the shirt collar and yanked him face-to-face with her.

“U-um, Gwen? What’re you doing?”

“Listen up, Levin, because I’m only gonna say this once,” Gwen hissed. “I have spent over _five years_ keeping Ben sweet, innocent, and more importantly, _mine_. So keep your paws off him or I will _kill you_. Am I clear?”

Kevin gaped at her. “Y-yeah…sure…totally clear.”

Gwen glared at him for a minute longer, just for good measure, and then let him go. By the time Ben came back with the napkins, she was all smiles again.

“Thanks, Ben.”

“Yeah, no problem…hey, Kevin? Are you okay?” Ben eyed the other boy worriedly. Kevin gave him a wobbly grin and assured him that he was fine. Then he scooted to the edge of the bench.

Ben was completely confused.

_‘Good,’_ Gwen thought. _‘Still mine.’_

 

**Massage**  
“Ooh,” Ben groaned. “A little lower…oh, yeah, that feels good…”

Kevin snorted in amusement. “Geez, Tennyson, you’d think we were havin’ sex or somethin’.”

“Uh-huh.” Ben wasn’t listening. Because Kevin was currently rubbing deep circles into his back, moving up and down, loosening all the kinks and knots that he’d gained from the combined pressure of being a hero and just simply being a fifteen-year-old boy.

Kevin dug the heels of his palms right at the curve of Ben’s lower back and the other boy groaned again.

“Fuck, where’d you learn to do this?”

“I didn’t. I just know your body.” Kevin repeated the action again, smirking in satisfaction as he drew a particularly sensual moan from the relaxed hero.

“Ah, _fuck_.”

Kevin chuckled. “You’re getting turned on by this, aren’t you?”

“Mm…no,” Ben said sleepily. “I know what you’re thinking, and the answer is no. I’m too tired for sex.”

“Come on, let me make you feel _real_ good. You don’t even have to do anything,” the older boy prodded, hopeful. He slid one hand slowly down between Ben’s thighs and Ben squirmed.

“Keviiiin…” he whined.

“Shall I take that as a yes?”

Ben pouted. “You can take it as an ‘I give up; do whatever the hell you want.’ Personally, I’d rather you keep massaging me, but…”

Kevin leaned down to kiss him. “Oh, trust me. I’ll give you a ‘massage.’”

He kissed him again, and then proceeded to “massage” Ben in places that felt ten times better than just his back.

 

**The Locket**  
Gwen stared at the locket. It was a beautiful gift, really.

A million things were running through her mind and she only just caught the end of what Kevin was saying. “…something to remember me by. You know, how I used to be.”

Oh, the symbolism was just beautiful. But she just wanted to cry. Or laugh. Or both.

She remembered when they took that picture. They were supposed to pick Ben and Julie up from their date…they were fifteen minutes early, so Gwen had forced him into a photo booth with her. He’d played along…and then he’d called Ben immediately after to ask where he was.

It wasn’t fair. It really wasn’t.

How much of ‘want me to go keep an eye on him?’ and ‘I just _love_ hanging out with your cousin’ was an excuse? If she thought about it, probably only a small part.

_‘Remember you by?’_ she thought, _‘This doesn’t change anything. You were in love with Ben even back then. What is this? A consolation prize?’_

She almost said it. But she bit her tongue.

“I don’t care how you look, Kevin,” she said.

Kevin took just one second to look back at her. “But I do,” he replied.

They went to Mr. Smoothy. Kevin smiled with love in his eyes as Ben slurped down smoothie after smoothie.

And all Gwen had was a locket.

 

**Better Things**  
“I’m not going to that other planet,” Kevin insisted. “I’ve got better things to do.”

Ben crossed his arms over his chest. “Oh, really? Like what?”

Kevin copied the motion. “Like fucking you,” he answered with a smirk. Ben blushed furiously.

Gwen turned a deadpan expression on him. “You had to ask.”

 

**Crocodile Tears**  
Gwen was touched…for a moment. Considering the circumstances, Kevin plus tears seemed to equal a sensitive side.

“Aww, you do have a heart!” she’d cooed.

Then Ben scoffed.

“Please, he’s crying because he lost his money.”

Kevin sniffled. “All those gold pieces…”

Gwen scowled and slumped back into the nearest seat.

“Of course,” she grumbled. “Trust Kevin to cry about money.”

She glanced over at her cousin, who was busy looking sullenly out the window.

_‘And trust Ben to know that,’_ she thought.

 

**Not a Hero**   
_“…I finally found something I hate more than war. You.”_

The transmission flickered to an end, but the hateful, disappointed face of the alien girl was still vivid in Ben’s mind. She had every right to hate him. She had less food than ever and was forced into labor to pay for the army’s weapons.

All that effort towards creating peace was now a complete waste. Because of an accident.

Well, accident or not, it was his fault; he’d ruined everything. He started the transmission again.

_“Dear Mister Ben 10…”_

“Are you watchin’ that thing again?”

Ben tore his eyes away from the message to look at Kevin; the way his eyes met the other boy’s was really disconcerting. He didn’t look angry or even annoyed, like he usually did all the other times Kevin broke into his room. He just looked tired and really, really hurt. Broken, almost. With a look like that, Kevin couldn’t even force himself to pretend that everything was okay.

“You gotta stop watchin’ that. You’ll drive yourself crazy; start gettin’ weird ideas…”

Ben let out a weak laugh. “What weird ideas? It seems pretty clear to me…I ruined everything.”— _“…something I hate more than war. You.”_ —“It’s my fault. I’m no hero.” Ben tried to start the transmission again, but Kevin snatched the little projector out of his hands.

“Stop that! What’re you lookin’ for in that stupid message?”

Ben didn’t answer for a moment; he just stared at the empty space between his hands where the transmission projector had been. Then he stood from his bed and began wandering around the room with a silent air of purpose. He dug around through his things for a few minutes and then brought out another projector from his dresser drawer.

It was the first message that the little girl had sent. Ben played it, staring intently at the adoring expression on the child’s face.

“That,” he said quietly. “I’m looking for…I dunno…just a hint of… _that_. That…hope, that…something that says, ‘you tried your best. You’re still a hero.’” Ben’s expression soured and he tossed the old message over his shoulder and slumped down on his bed again. “But I’m wasting my time. I ruined everything. I’m not a hero.” He raised his hands to cover his face and Kevin’s heart sunk to his stomach. Ben was so deep in despair and he honestly had no idea what to say. He was no good at this “comforting” thing.

Haltingly, he sat next to Ben on the wrinkled comforter, forming words as he sat down. He wasn’t sure if they’d help. “Don’t talk like that; ‘course you’re a hero. You stopped the Highbreed from destroying the Earth, right?”

“ _Wrong_.” Ben didn’t even look up. “I managed to repair their DNA, which only served to make them want to _kill_ themselves. _Riney_ was the one who convinced them not to.” Kevin tried to interject that it _had_ been a pretty good idea, but Ben was on a roll now. “Then let’s not forget that I tried to hack into the Omnitrix, even though Azmuth told me not to; I turned you into a monster…what have I actually done that was in _any_ way heroic?”

Kevin’s heart sank even further. “You’ve really been thinkin’ a lot about this.”

“Lot of reasons to.”

They sat in silence for a moment longer. Kevin could only think of one thing to say…and truth though it was, he was worried it would come out sounding like pity.

He tried anyway. A soft look in his eyes, he cupped Ben’s face in his hands and turned it upwards. The look in Ben’s eyes…indescribably painful. Asking for help, but not knowing if he deserved it.

“Hey, you tried your best. You’re still a hero.” (Quoting Ben’s words earlier weren’t enough though. Just one more thing would do the trick…) “At least to me, anyway.”

Ben buried his face in Kevin’s chest. He wasn’t crying, but Kevin knew he wanted to.

Honestly? Kevin wanted to cry, too.

 

**Anything**  
Kevin would do anything to see him smile again. Anything. This pain, this depression was _not_ Ben, and he hated it.

He kind of blamed himself for some of it. If he had been there with Ben, trying to convince those reds and blues to stop fighting, maybe things would have gone better. If he hadn’t gotten caught up in his _stupid_ scams again…

It’s not like he had anything to show for that little weapons-trading business, anyway. He didn’t care anymore. There were other ways to earn money.

Ben had lost his only chance to win those people over. That was worse.

And Kevin would give anything to fix that.

 

**Sometimes I Just Don’t Know**  
Ben stared from Kevin, who was having a grand old time guzzling soda and wolfing down a pizza all at once, to Gwen, who despite having witnessed moments like this several times before, still seemed to like the big hulking brute. He was totally confused.

“I don’t know what you see in him,” he said after a moment.

Gwen raised a brow at him. “What are you talking about? You like him, too.”

“Well, yeah, but…you seem to think he’s this secretly ‘sensitive’ and ‘charming’ guy. At least I realize he’s just a lovable idiot.”

Kevin took a break from his chomp-and-slurp fest to announce that, “I’m still here, guys. Can hear everything you’re saying.”

He was ignored, and Gwen continued on, “Oh, come on, Ben! He can be sweet and romantic when he wants to.”

“More like on accident,” Ben muttered, rolling his eyes.

Gwen crossed her arms. “Fine, I’ll prove it. Kevin, what would you call a perfect first date?”

Kevin shrugged. “Dinner and a movie?”

Gwen looked smug. “See?”

Ben shook his head. “And why is that, Kevin?”

Kevin paused a moment, and then suddenly looked very sullen. “I dunno,” he admitted finally. “I just wanted to sound romantic…”

Now it was Ben’s turn to look smug. “See? I know my Kevin.”

Gwen wasn’t amused. She grabbed the still half-full soda can out of Kevin’s hand and dumped it over Ben’s head. Then she walked away.

Ben blinked soda out of his eyes. “Eww…backwash.”

 

**The Misconceptions Women Have**  
 _‘You lied to me Gwen,’_ Kevin though. _‘You lied to my face.’_

Kevin poked the dark spot on his stomach almost in fascination before turning his eyes to his sleeping bedmate. With that peaceful expression on his face, Ben Tennyson didn’t look even close to the insatiable sex partner he had been just a few hours ago. Not that the sex wasn’t enjoyable, but Kevin had to wonder where all that energy came from.

“‘Ben’s so sweet,’” Kevin muttered, quoting not only Gwen, but Julie as well, “‘Ben’s so innocent. Treat him right, Kevin. Don’t take advantage of him.’ Innocent, my _ass_. I’ve got more hickeys than I do skin. What is it with him and biting me?”

As if in response, Ben moved to nestle his head in the crook of Kevin’s neck with a sleepy sigh. Which reminded Kevin of the hickey just below his ear. He was never going to be able to hide that. Maybe Gwen and Julie would see it.

He wondered what they’d think of their “sweet” and “innocent” Ben then.


	16. Baby Picture

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set 16.

**Baby Picture**  
“You have a picture of your _car_ ,” Ben said incredulously. “I knew you were obsessed with it, but _really_?”

Kevin ignored the fact that he was being made fun of and instead began to act like a proud father. “Yup. That was her first paint job.”

Ben raised a brow. “You call it a ‘her’?” This was also ignored. Gwen and Julie took this moment to take a closer look at the picture themselves.

“So you did choose green,” Gwen said, only mildly surprised. “Funny, I always thought you would have preferred to color it black.”

Kevin smiled a little. “Well, I had my reasons for paintin’ her green…”

Gwen was about to ask what his reasons were when Julie suddenly pointed to something in the picture.

“Hey, Ben, isn’t that you soccer team playing in the background?”

Kevin coughed.

 

**Guys**  
“…what if Ship was just a regular dog or something? My dog?”

This was something Julie had thought about before, and Gwen could relate to the issue somewhat…she did have her own worries about Kevin, after all. “Ben’s gone into outer space just so you can keep Ship,” she answered. “If this is important to you, it’s important to him.”

“I guess so,” Julie agreed reluctantly. Ship beeped encouragingly, to which he received a pet on the head. “It’s just…Ship is the only thing that Ben and I share that has nothing to do with Kevin. If Ben doesn’t even care about him, then I really don’t have _anything_ with Ben.”

Gwen blinked. She hadn’t really considered that. “That’s…a valid point.” She thought about this for another moment and was suddenly worried about leaving those boys alone together. “Wow…if you think about it…lately it’s been more like they’re dating each other than us.”

Julie nodded. “Right…Ben hasn’t really been catching any of the hints I’ve been throwing at him. So, I’m guessing it’s the same with Kevin?”

Gwen thought about this, too. “Kevin? If it isn’t about his car—oh, excuse me—his ‘ _ride_ ,’” she corrected herself with air quotes and a roll of the eyes, “or some alien tech, then he’s pretty much oblivious. So I can’t say for sure that _that’s_ anything to worry about…but it does worry me that he seems to always want to run off with Ben somewhere.”

“That is a bit of a red flag,” Julie agreed, finishing the last of her smoothie. It was already dark out and Mr. Smoothy was closed for the night, so the girls stood up to leave.

“I don’t know. It’s just so…” Gwen paused to find the right word.

“Complicated,” Julie finished bluntly.

Both girls sighed. “Guys.”

 

**Girls**  
“What is it with her and that ‘dog’ thing anyway?” Ben asked, air quote emphasizing his irritation.

Kevin smirked knowingly. For some reason, the fact that Ben was totally clueless about this made him happy. “You guys found it on your first date, right?”

Ben shrugged. “I don’t think that has anything to do with it.”

“Keep thinkin,’” Kevin responded with a chuckle, “you’ll get better with practice.”

“It’s like she’s saying if I don’t care about Ship, then I don’t care about her,” Ben went on. He glanced over at Kevin. The older boy was smirking again. “ _Seriously_?”

“Girls _are_ weird like that sometimes,” Kevin replied. Ben groaned.

“ _Great_. Does Gwen do stuff like this to you, too?”

Kevin shrugged. “Sometimes. I just pretend not to notice, though.”

“How come?” Ben cocked his head in confusion. “I thought you liked Gwen.”

“Nah. Gwen’s cool, but you know—on your left!”

Ben reacted quickly and blasted the debris out of their way. “Complicated?” he finished.

“Pretty much.” Kevin glanced briefly at the boy next to him. “You’re not, though,” he added quietly.

Ben blushed. “Don’t let Gwen hear you say that.” He paused. “Don’t let Julie hear it, either.”

Kevin made a face. “She’d kill me.”

Both boys sighed. “Girls.”

 

**Criminal Mastermind**  
“…they’ll listen to me before they listen to criminal mastermind Kevin Levin,” Ben finished. But he may as well have been flirting with Kevin rather than trying to reason with him, the way the older boy reacted.

Kevin smiled the way Gwen did whenever Kevin took a moment to talk to her and said, “Mastermind?” Ben rolled his eyes.

“Oh, Kevin, the way you sell level five tech on Earth’s black market absolutely makes my heart skip a beat,” he answered dryly. “Seriously, will you let me do the talking or what?”

But Kevin wasn’t listening anymore. He was off in Ben-land.

_‘Ben called me a mastermind…’_

 

**Lover’s Quarrel**  
“You could have gotten me throw into the Null Void! _Again_! I _told_ you to let me do the talking!” Kevin was pissed, and as far as he was concerned he had a right to be. But as far as Ben was concerned, he was completely overreacting.

“ _Excuse_ me? The only reason that _didn’t_ happen was because I spoke up. Did you not _hear_ the judge, Kevin?” Ben leaned back in his seat and crossed his arms. “You shouldn’t try to be all, ‘step aside and let the _man_ handle things’ anyway.”

Kevin sputtered. “Who said I was being like that? And anyway, you’re just lucky the judge comes from a race of people that have a huge thing for rank.”

“I’m sorry, what?” Ben cupped his hand around his ear as though he hadn’t heard. “Rank? Are you perhaps insinuating that everything worked out because of me?” He smirked. “I did tell you that they’d listen to me over you.”

Kevin growled. “Why you little—”

“Um, yes, excuse me,” Baz-El spoke up, sounding quite annoyed, “I would much prefer that you focus on getting back to Earth rather than on your, as you humans call it, ‘lover’s quarrel,’ if you please.”

Both boys froze. Ben blushed and looked out the window. Kevin stared at the open space ahead of them.

The rest of the trip was very silent.

 

**Bring My Smoothies Back**  
Mr. Smoothy was destroyed. That meant no smoothies. That meant that half of Ben’s reason for living was gone.

Until Kevin said, “I built a smoothie-maker into my car. Y’know, just until Mr. Smoothy’s back in business.”

Ben replied, with a sparkle in his eyes, “I love you.”

And Kevin was happy with that.

 

**The Mysterious Nose**  
At twelve years old, Ben was astonished to find something that looked strangely like a _nose_ in his gym locker. A _nose_. Was this someone’s really bad idea of a prank?

He called over his gym teacher.

Somewhere in the Null Void, Kevin Levin was enjoying the secretly-missed scent of Ben Tennyson…only to be interrupted by the sudden assault of sewage smell as back on Earth, his nose was flushed down a toilet.

It was hard to say whether it had been worth it.

 

**The Mysterious Nose: Confronted**  
“…spent three hours, my nose in another dimension,” Kevin finished. Gwen got a decidedly thoughtful look on her face.

“Your nose, huh?” The thought that was crossing her mind was too funny not to smile at…just a little. “Ben said he found something that looked _just_ like a nose in his gym locker a few years ago.”

Kevin froze in the midst of digging through his trunk and swallowed. “Um…that so?”

Gwen smirked. “So how did it smell, Kevin?”

Julie looked a little sick.

Kevin just went back to digging for stuff and didn’t say a word.

 

**Sign Language**  
Gwen made a face as her cousin’s hand began moving again. It was really creepy. It was flopping around on Julie’s tennis racket like a dead fish; looked like it was trying to get into a good position for…something.

Then it raised a pinky in the air. Gwen cocked her head at it, as though a different angle would help her understand just what the hand was trying to do.

Then the finger and thumb made an “L” shape, and she realized it was trying to spell something. She called Kevin over. “Look. I think Ben might be trying to give us a message.”

Kevin peered at it. It had just made an “O” shape. “Huh. Wonder what he’s tryin’ to say.”

Then a “V” came next. Then an “E.” Gwen smiled a little and started to call Julie over, but the hand had other ideas. It jumped up of its own accord and poked Kevin in the chest.

Gwen stared at him.

Kevin cleared his throat. “Weird…I, uh…didn’t know Ben knew sign language.”

 

**The Adams Family**  
Gwen was scowling. They were all worried about Ben and Kevin was making it worse with his…reruns. What was it with Kevin and his reruns?

“Seriously,” he was saying, “if we can’t get Ben back by Halloween, we can just all go as the Adams Family.” He lifted up Ben’s hand. “Ben can be Thing!” Then he started humming the theme song.

Gwen smacked her forehead. _‘Idiot.’_


	17. Hand and...Nose

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set 17.

**Hand and…Nose**  
Ben stared at his stump of an arm in disbelief. “How did this happen? _Again_?”

“No clue,” Kevin said; with his lack of nose, it was amazing he didn’t sound as though he had a cold. He was currently in the process of fixing up the weapon that had gotten them into this predicament. With Sunder in the Null Void, Kevin had decided to use his legal right as a Plumber to pull a few strings and confiscate the hunter’s weapon. A not-entirely bad idea; however, his decision to play with it probably was. Now the axe was broken, and Ben’s hand and his nose were lost somewhere.

Ben sighed and rested his chin on his remaining palm. “Hurry up and fix it. My mom would pass out if I came home without a hand.”

“I’m workin’ on it,” Kevin answered. He paused. “I smell hand lotion.”

“Hey, my hands get really rough playing soccer! I’m the goalie, you know!”

Kevin smirked. “Smells nice. Cherry blossoms?”

Ben blushed. “Just fix the stupid weapon already…”

Kevin just chuckled and continued working.

 

**Pros and Cons**  
“Pros of camping: fresh air, cookouts. Cons of camping: your grandpa’s old Plumber stories that we’ve heard ten times before…not to mention that Ben refuses to put out in the middle of—” Kevin cut himself off.

Gwen just stared at him.

 

**Ben’s Request**  
A ripple of curiosity and awe ran through the courtyard as the familiar ship landed at the Highbreed Council Hall’s front entrance. The awe only increased as Ben Tennyson stepped from the aircraft. Immediately the Highbreed Supreme had left the Hall to meet him.

“Ben-Ben Tennyson.” Riney was pleased, of course. He was always pleased to receive a visit from Ben. “It is a great pleasure to see you, and a great honor for my people. What brings you here?”

“I need your help,” Ben said at once. “The Earth is in trouble; some old weapon from…well…from this planet.”

“Our old failsafe.” The Highbreed’s voice rumbled in displeasure. “It was never supposed to activate unless the soldier assigned to the job was awakened.”

“Well, he woke up,” Ben said. “And he has no idea that the war ended peacefully. But if you came along—”

Riney raised a hand. “Say no more, Ben-Ben Tennyson. I will go with you.”

Ben smiled. “Good. Let’s hurry.”

As they boarded Ship, Riney wondered if it was unbecoming of him to use Ben-Ben’s request as an excuse to keep an eye on Levin Kevin Levin.

Well, as long as he could keep Ben-Ben safe, then he supposed it was all right.

 

**The Bad Touch**  
“Ben-Ben Tennyson!”

The entire failsafe had collapsed. Ben-Ben was inside…Riney had been sure Ben-Ben would be able to protect himself…how could this happen?

“Is just fine, so thanks for asking!” Levin Kevin Levin announced. The group was surrounded by a shield…yes, Ben-Ben was safe.

…wait, what was this? Where was Levin Kevin Levin’s hand resting? Riney had done his research. According to human custom, Levin Kevin Levin’s hand was now settled on a most unacceptable place!

Riney grumbled. He had been mistaken. Ben-Ben Tennyson was _far_ from safe…

 

**Stare-Down**  
Kevin glared at the Highbreed. The Highbreed glared back (at least, he thought it did; lack of discernible facial features and all that). Neither had budged an inch since Ben and Gwen had walked away with their grandfather.

Reinrassig the Third had some unfinished business with Levin Kevin Levin.

After what seemed like ages of the intense stares, the High-Breed finally spoke. “You, Levin Kevin Levin, are untrustworthy. Ben-Ben Tennyson is not safe with you. I demand you keep your vermin hands off of him.”

If this had been meant to surprise Levin, then it hadn’t worked. Levin’s glare only intensified. “Not safe with me? Remind me whose weapon nearly destroyed his entire planet, will ya?”

Riney thrust an accusing claw at Levin. “I will not have your lecherous intentions bringing trouble to Ben-Ben Tennyson!” he snarled. Levin returned the High-Breed’s gesture with his middle finger, rather than his index. Riney’s knowledge of human gestures was limited, but he was sure that this was a very rude one.

“ _Ben-Ben_ seems to like my ‘lecherous intentions,’ thank you very much!”

“I highly doubt that, _vermin_.”

They glared at each other for several more seconds, until the very source of their argument came into the clearing once more.

“Yeah, hey; Mister ‘lecherous intentions’? There’s a burger cooking on the grill for you.”

Levin shot Riney a smug smile. “Be there in a sec.”

“This is not over,” Riney growled.

Levin Kevin Levin went to Ben-Ben’s side with a triumphant gait, as though he had won some prize…there was his filthy, vermin hand now, reaching for Ben-Ben’s rear as though it were his to claim…

Ben-Ben swatted it away without a word.

If he had had lips, Riney would have been smiling right then.

 

**Cuddling**  
Ben had opted to allow Kevin to sleep next to him that night, only because the (usually disagreeable) mutant had promised that he “wouldn’t do it tonight.” Ben was not fond of any form of physical intimacy in public, especially if “public” included his grandfather and cousin. Kevin seemed to understand that, so Ben didn’t mind letting him put their sleeping bags next to each other.

Unfortunately, by some really bizarre twist of fate (against both Ben’s dislike of PDA and Kevin’s masculinity), Kevin liked to cuddle.

Ben woke after what felt like only a few minutes of peaceful sleep to something heavy landing on his chest. His eyes fluttered for a moment as his brain tried to tell the rest of his body that, yes, he was awake and, no, he wasn’t going to get back to sleep until he figured out what the heavy thing was. Once he got his eyes fully open, he glanced to his side.

Kevin had thrown an arm over him and scooted closer; he looked like a little kid with a teddy bear.

It was kind of…cute. Now, at least. In the morning…it would just be awkward. He didn’t want to think about how Gwen and his grandpa would react.

So, Kevin’s cute-and-cuddliness had to end.

He spent several long, difficult minutes trying to shove Kevin’s arm off his chest before he could finally get back to sleep.

Honestly, as happy as he was to dispel any threat of awkwardness in the morning, Ben had to admit…he didn’t really mind the cuddling.

 

**The Power of Love**  
“So, Kevin, I’m just curious,” Gwen began, taking a contemplative sip of her cherry-apple smoothie, “what _does_ the ‘power of love’ work on?”

Mr. Smoothy was a place for interesting topics.

Kevin made a face. “Huh?”

“When we were trying to get Grandpa Max out of the plant-weapon,” Gwen explained. “You said, ‘I don’t think the power of love is going to work this time, Ben.’” She did quite an amusing impression of Kevin, but she was the only one who seemed to find it funny. Kevin’s frown deepened and, well, Ben was drinking lime-banana-radish, so he ignored her. Gwen repeated her question, “So what does the ‘power of love’ work on? In your opinion.”

Kevin rubbed the back of his head. “Uh…well…I dunno…me, I guess.”

That surprised Gwen a little. “You? Why is that?” The sound of Ben happily slurping away suddenly stopped; apparently he was interested, too.

Kevin shrugged. “I followed Ben out here, didn’t I?”

Ben choked. Then he stood up. “I’m, uh…I’m gonna go get another smoothie…”

As he walked away, Kevin’s lips stretched into a smug grin.

Gwen frowned at him. “You said that on purpose.”

Kevin laughed. “Yeah, I just couldn’t resist that cute look on his face.”

 

**Dad**  
“So, what were you going to show me, Kevin?”

Ben watched curiously as Kevin dug through numerous drawers and hidden compartments in his messy bedroom. He’d said he wanted to show Ben something that Grandpa Max had given him.

“I haven’t even shown Gwen this,” Kevin said, not really answering the question. It was more like he was distracting himself from the distress at having lost this obviously precious object.

“Well, I’m honored,” Ben said, only a tiny bit of sarcasm in his voice. Secretly, he was a little proud of the fact that there were some things that were just for him and Kevin; no Gwens allowed.

“Aha!” Kevin cried out in triumph as he emerged from a pile of laundry with a photograph in his hand. Ben stepped over the piles of things on the floor to take a look at it.

“Is that…your dad?”

Kevin smiled. “Yeah.”

“Wow.” Ben tilted his head to the side. “He looks just like you…a little more lean, though; and longer hair.” He chuckled. “Well, now I know where your good looks come from.”

Kevin laughed and sat down on his bed, tugging Ben’s wrist along the way. Ben sat with him, admiring the picture.

“I bet he woulda liked you,” Kevin said thoughtfully after a moment. Ben laid his head on Kevin’s shoulder.

“You think?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, it’s good to know I have your dad’s approval.” Ben smiled and kissed Kevin’s cheek. It was weirder to do that now, with Kevin’s skin being made of rock now, but the gesture was always appreciated anyhow.

“Think he’d be proud of me?” Kevin asked softly, as though it was a difficult question. A painful question.

But it was an easy answer.

“Yeah. He definitely would be.”

 

**Of Bikes and Boyfriends**  
“I have one more question for you, Ben,” Elena said after a thoughtful pause. Ben shifted on his stolen motorcycle and waited. The purr of the bike’s engine sounded almost expectant.

“Ask away,” he said.

Elena paused again. “What does your boyfriend think about you doing this?”

Ben blinked. Obviously he hadn’t expected that one. “What?”

“Your boyfriend,” Elena answered. “That…macho guy. What was his name?”

“Kevin,” Ben told her, seeming a little confused. “How’d you know he was my boyfriend?”

Elena made an impatient noise. “You’re not answering my question.”

Ben shook his head. “Oh, _please_.” He grinned at her. “Who d’you think helped me steal the motorcycle?”

 

**Ben Tan**  
“You just lay there and work on your Ben-tan,” Kevin said; and despite his disgruntled tone, the joke was not lost on Ben. He smirked a little and decided that he just couldn’t resist adding onto it. He stretched out on the sand, momentarily arching his back and accentuating every sensual angle of his body.

Kevin raised a brow. “What’re you doing?”

Ben blinked innocently. “Working on my tan. Just like you said.”

“And…you’re choosing _that_ excuse for trying to seduce me?”

Gwen looked up from her book. “You have to admit, you walked right into it.”

“True.” Kevin paused a moment. “Gwen, do you think anyone would notice if I dragged Ben back to my car right now?”

Ben looked kind of hopeful.

Gwen looked kind of deadpan. “Yes. Yes I think someone would notice.”

Kevin nodded. “Okay, then. Later.” That settled it. Kevin sat back, his palms supporting his wait.

Ben pouted. “You guys are no fun.”


	18. Giant Smoothie

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set 18. Featuring a little bit of Gwencaster.

**Giant Smoothie**  
“Agh! It’s too big! Take it out!”

Gwen paused in front of Kevin’s garage door, stunned. That was Kevin’s voice she’d heard just now.

“Stop whining,” none other than Ben chided, “it’s not even all the way in, yet.” Gwen paled. What in the world were they doing.

She almost jumped right out of her skin as Kevin suddenly cried out in pain, “Ben, I’m serious, take it out!”

Gwen turned her back on the two voices and took off very quickly. Whatever she was hearing, she didn’t want to hear any more of it.

In the garage, Kevin rubbed his sore arm where the giant Mr. Smoothy lid had hit him after it had toppled off.

“It’s not gonna fit in my garage, Ben,” he said, irritated. “It’s way too big.”

“It _has_ to fit,” Ben insisted, patting the side of the giant cup. “I need to store it _somewhere_. I mean, just think! With this, I could get free refills to last me _months_!”

Kevin gave his boyfriend a disgruntled look. “Uh-huh. And how do you propose to get this thing _out_ of my garage in order to _get_ said refills?”

There was a pause.

“I hadn’t thought of that,” Ben replied quietly.

 

**Shouldn’t Have Told You That**  
“I dunno, it’s all kinda blurry after she kissed me.” Kevin caught himself too late. Gwen looked mad, of course; but that was the least of Kevin’s problems.

Ben looked mad, too.

“She _kissed_ you?” Gwen spat out, looking ready to spit fire out as well.

“Yeah…”—Kevin chanced a look at Ben; the younger boy was _pissed_ —“I didn’t mean to tell you that part.”

Gwen stalked off.

Ben didn’t even bother to hide his jealousy. “That was a dumb thing to say.”

Kevin inwardly groaned. _‘I am so not getting laid anytime soon.’_

 

**Hopes and Heartaches**   
_‘Restoration spell…shape-shifting spell…maybe combing those would work?’_

Gwen turned a page, a thoughtful frown upon her face. Her forehead was wrinkled in concentration.

_‘There is also that copy spell to consider…maybe some variation on that…’_

There had to be something. Gwen wouldn’t stop looking until she found a way to help Kevin. She wouldn’t stop until he was back to his old self…until Ben was back to his old self.

Her cousin’s pleading eyes came to mind; his moment of weakness in an ongoing attempt to bury his guilt. “You have some spellbooks, right?” he’d asked her. “You could…I dunno, see if there’s a spell that can fix this, can’t you?”

Ben had never been very good at dealing with true pain. Yes, he openly complained about Kevin’s attitude and acted like a kid, but that was only his failing hope to make things seem better than they were. Gwen recalled something similar after Kevin had turned on Ben five years ago. Her cousin had obsessed for three days over finding every cheat to his game; witnessing Kevin’s first mutation had earned a week of arranging and rearranging his Sumo Slammers cards several different ways. Both instances earned nightmares that made Gwen realize how much more she needed to learn about her cousin.  
And in the end, how much more she could relate to him than she had first thought.

Her fingers idly traced the runes on the worn cover of the spellbook while she looked through it. The symbols were as endearing to her as the smallest of Kevin’s smiles were to Ben, but twice as treasured. Kevin was a good guy now. There was always an opportunity to see more of those smiles.

But these spellbooks were all Gwen had of Charmcaster. And it was painfully clear that she was never going to change.

Thinking of such things always caused her heartache.

_‘A material-reforming spell…now there’s something…’_

Never mind her own heartache for now. For Ben, for Kevin…for the hope that things could be right between those two again.

Gwen turned the page. _‘Well,’_ she thought, a wry smile crossing her face, _‘maybe…one little love spell wouldn’t hurt…’_

 

**Ask Me**  
 _‘Ask me,’_ Ben thought. _‘Ask me, Kevin. Ask me.’_ He hoped in vain for the plea to reach Kevin’s ears. But he still couldn’t bring himself to say it aloud.

“Since the accident, huh?” Kevin asked, his expression a vision of guilt. “And I even yelled at her about it…”

“Yeah, you should probably apologize,” Ben said, perfectly masking his desperate thoughts. “Or…take her out somewhere…or something.”

_‘It’s not her fault you’re like this. It’s my fault! Ask me!’_

Kevin nodded. “Yeah, you’re right…I should…make it up to her…”

_‘Ask me why I haven’t done anything to help you!’_

But Kevin didn’t ask. He just turned and started to walk towards his car.

“Why were you so mad about it, anyway? It wasn’t Gwen’s fault that you ended up like this.”

Kevin stopped. Ben’s heart beat a panicked rhythm against his ribcage as the mutant turned around, fixing him with the _strangest_ look…

“I know. It was your fault.”

Ben swallowed down his nerves, but he couldn’t seem to stop his heart’s frantic pounding. “So…why were you mad at her…and not at me?”

So dangerously close to the question…if Kevin cared enough, he would ask it. Then Ben would reveal that he’d really been working at the Omnitrix since the accident, trying to help— _just like Gwen_ —and then he’d be just that much closer to Kevin…

But Kevin didn’t ask. He just glared, and turned, and grumbled out the most heartbreaking thing Ben had ever heard. “Because I expect _her_ to care.”

And Ben couldn’t bring himself to say any more.

 

**Hole in One**  
This was supposed to be _their_ date. Not another “team outing.”

Gwen could be so pushy sometimes. And she was so obnoxiously _meticulous_ about her mini-golf.

In fact, she took so long in between strokes that—if you’ll pardon the pun—Ben and Kevin decided to do a little _stroking_ of their own. With their tongues. It made Gwen’s over-concentrated putting quite bearable.

Unfortunately, they sort of lost track of time during their make-out session, and eventually had to be forced back into reality by Gwen clearing her throat.

She had a smug look on her face as she said, “And I thought I was the only person here who got a hole in one.”

 

**The Same Argument**  
“Ben,” Kevin said warningly, “we’ve been _through_ this already.”

Ben tilted his head; it was such a ridiculously innocent gesture that Kevin almost wanted to hit him. “Been through what?” he asked.

Kevin raised a stony brow. “Yeah, hello, Ben Tennyson? This is experience calling. We’d like to remind you about the monkey that tricked you using some sob-story about his home planet.”

“Oh, that.” Ben rolled his eyes. “Come on, Kevin, this is different. It’s _Vilgax_. I don’t have to _trust_ him. I just wanna go check things out. Besides, I know you’d knock him into next week if he ever tried to hurt me.” Ben’s eyelashes fluttered cutely to accentuate his last remark. Something ridiculously sweet to go with the earlier ridiculous innocence, Kevin supposed. Ben was such a little brat sometimes.

Kevin sighed. “Why the hell can I never say ‘no’ to you?”

Ben grinned. “Because you love me. Now let’s get going.”

 

**Silly Gwen**  
“Don’t you remember how many times this guy tried to kill you?” Gwen asked, frowning at Ben in a way that said, “I highly disapprove of your stupidity.”

Ben smirked.

“Sure I do,” he replied. “About as many times as Kevin tried to kill me.”

Gwen opened her mouth to protest, but shut it quickly as she realized it was true.

“Wow,” she said. “Now I just feel silly.”

 

**Free Cookies**  
This was so obvious. So very, very obvious.

“Free Cookies.” This was the sign attached to Kevin’s car door. Ben wasn’t sure if Kevin was messing around or if he genuinely thought Ben was that gullible.

Which he totally wasn’t. No matter how much he liked cookies.

Really, this was so obvious. Kevin might as well just put, “Ben Tennyson, come have sex with me in my car” on the door instead.

…Ben took the bait.

 

**What Happens in Vilgaxia**  
Gwen stood in front of Ship, impatiently tapping her foot. They were supposed to have left about ten minutes ago, and still Ben and Kevin were nowhere to be found.

She waited a little longer.

Another few minutes later, Kevin and Ben _finally_ showed up, both looking very satisfied and a little rumpled.

Gwen put her hands on her hips. “Geez, where have you guys _been_? We were supposed to be _gone_ by now. Ship, show them the time.”

With a cheery beep, Ship displayed a digital clock before the boys. They didn’t look too concerned.

Ben shrugged. “We’re here now, aren’t we?”

“Well, yeah, but—” Gwen paused. “What were you two doing, anyway?”

The boys grinned at each other.

“Sorry, Gwen,” Kevin started. “What happens in Vilgaxia—”

“—stays in Vilgaxia,” Ben finished.

Gwen just stared at them.

Then she got inside Ship without a word.

Seriously, she should have seen that coming.

 

**For the One You Love**  
Just before he left, Ben Tennyson asked one question: “How can you love your people so much, yet still be able to destroy whole planets just for power?”

As Vilgax looked over his beloved home, he realized that he had forgotten.

As a child, Vilgax had been much like the rest of his people. Innocent, weak, so unaware of what it took to keep their home safe from the rest of the world. With wide eyes and a quivering heart, he’d watched _her_ people conquer his planet and bend his people to their will, as easily as he could now jump through space. Long into his boyhood, Vilgax was but a small part of a conqueror’s nation.

But _she_ was a warrior. _She_ was all that strength was supposed to be, and it was because of her that Vilgax no longer felt bitter about his past. Garina, daughter of the conqueror that had enslaved his planet, taught Vilgax that feelings were useless. Bitterness, rage, pride, sadness; even the deepest love for his people did nothing. Action was the only thing that could protect them. Action had taken their home.

Of course, Vilgax still knew that, useless or not, emotions were ever-present, even in the hearts of the mightiest warriors. And they were very real between himself and the conqueror’s daughter. As her interest in him grew, she taught him more of how to fight like her people. As his interest in her grew, he taught her more of appreciating life’s simpler joys the way his people did. Their love made a strange mix of two different cultures, but it wasn’t a bad mix.

One day, Garina gazed out at the dim light of Vilgaxian sun (then called the Chimeran sun) and announced to him, “I want to conquer a thousand worlds, just to have the pleasure of ruling over a thousand beautiful suns like this.”

But a warrior’s life can be so tragically short. It wasn’t long after Vilgax saw her off with well-wishes that he received the news of her death. In an emotionless form of mourning, Vilgax killed her father and reclaimed his own planet. Such was a warrior’s life. She would have understood.

“How can I conquer…?” he muttered to himself. “Because that was her wish…what else would I do for the one I love?”

A smirk graced Vilgax’s features. From his balcony, he watched Ben Tennyson follow his mutated friend. Vilgax was no fool. He recognized those familiar feelings.

“What would you do, Ben Tennyson…for the one that _you_ love?”


	19. Biker Babe Girlfriend

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set 19. Alien Swarm drabbles.

**Biker Babe Girlfriend**  
Ben rolled his eyes. “Elena is not my girlfriend, Kevin; we were like, thirteen.” He opened the door to the auto shop, letting Gwen inside first.

“Jealousy is not becoming on you, Kevin,” the mana-user quipped as she walked through the door. Kevin grumbled a little.

“Now _you’r_ e ganging up on me, Gwen? I thought you didn’t trust her, either.” Kevin made to go inside, but Ben stopped him with a firm stance and a raised index finger. Kevin raised a brow at him.

“Ah-ah, no jealous boyfriends beyond this point,” Ben announced cheekily.

“I work here,” Kevin replied bluntly, though that didn’t help anything. Ben just smiled a little more and tapped his lips expectantly. Slightly appeased, Kevin obliged.

“There. Now you can go in.” Ben backed into the doorway and let a considerably-less-grumpy Kevin follow him inside. He felt pretty good about ending the argument and getting a kiss all in one swoop.

He could only groan in frustration when Kevin added, “So, you’re sure Elena’s not your girlfriend, right?”

 

**Molly**  
Molly Sudo was a smart girl (socially, that is; academics weren’t really her thing, but she was incredibly person-savvy). She’d lived in Bellwood long enough to know most everyone, and she’d attended Bellwood public schools just long enough to know who was dating who and what types some of her friends seemed to like. At this age, romance and “hooking up” were always on everyone’s mind.

Naturally for Molly, that made people like Ben Tennyson _very_ interesting to observe.

She remembered Elena. There had been a real _fire_ to her. And those dark eyes—Ben used to always trip over his own feet trying to impress her. Molly remembered finding it odd, though, that the distracted look on his face always seemed to come from somewhere else. She found it even odder that his crush seemed to simply fade away once Elena left.

She also remembered freshman year, when she had been pretty close with Julie Yamamoto (Julie was never very interesting to talk to, but she was very helpful around exam-time). She remembered the first time she’d spotted Ben giving Julie that _look_. The look of, “wow, she’s cute;” but he never seemed interested in asking her out. But at the first sign of spunk (Elena’s spunk, Molly guessed at the time; but even that had seemed wrong), Ben was all over Julie like black on a Goth.

Molly knew he still wasn’t that crazy about her.

Julie moved away at the end of freshman year, leaving Ben for a prestigious private school, just like that. Molly found herself gravitating towards him for no other reason than he was just so _interesting_. Whatever was brewing in this boy’s romantic heart had him falling for the first pair of fiery, dark eyes that met his. Molly was curious (and, okay, a little flattered) when Ben started making goo-goo eyes at _her_.

And then…oh, _then_ …

She met Kevin.

Now, Kevin—Kevin was Elena; or better yet, Elena was Kevin. Molly could see about a _thousand_ similarities between the two—and that included the way Ben looked at them. Especially at Kevin. And when Ben told her that he’d met Kevin when they were both _kids_ , suddenly her three years of observation made perfect sense.

Ben had been chasing Kevin for _six years_ , and in the form of girls with black hair, dark eyes, and a take-charge attitude, just like Kevin had. They had just been replacements for what Ben _really_ wanted.

Whether Kevin knew about Ben’s little crush on him or not; that was still a complete mystery.

But Molly Sudo was a smart girl. And she intended to figure that out.

 

**All Work and No Play**  
“You know Benji,” Kevin said, grabbing a slice of pizza from the mini-fridge, “all work and no play.”

Ben jerked his head in the direction of the door, urging Kevin forward.

_‘Which is why,’_ the older boy thought as he followed his companions into the back of the shop, _‘I hardly ever get fucking laid.’_

 

**Puppy Love**  
“Elena was Ben’s first crush,” Gwen said. “She was on Ben’s soccer team in middle school—Ben couldn’t kick a ball in a straight line while she was around.” She laughed at the memory, fondly; Kevin laughed too, with a fondness of a different kind in his eyes. And then Gwen added, “He was really bummed out after she moved away.” Kevin’s jaw seemed to tighten and all that fondness left.

“Great. So now it’s puppy love.”

Gwen shrugged. “Cousin Ben’s growing up,” she replied. “Had to happen sometime.”

“Yeah, I’ll believe that when I see it,” Kevin grumbled. It suddenly dawned on Gwen just how much his expression had darkened in the past few seconds of their conversation, and she felt a pang of jealousy in her heart. Did she really have to mention Ben every time she wanted some kind of reaction out of Kevin?

Kevin was quiet and serious as he worked at the computer, focusing hard as though trying not to let his own feelings distract him. It was upsetting.

Gwen sighed.

“You know,” she began, “there was only one other time I ever saw him that…sad. Before Elena.”

“Oh, yeah?” Kevin responded vaguely, only half-listening.

“Yeah.” Gwen sighed again. “That was when you turned on him.” Kevin froze. “He was really happy when you came back, too,” she went on. Kevin looked up at her and she smiled sadly.

Was this really what Gwen needed to do to get him to look at her?

“Now _that’s_ puppy love,” she whispered to him.

Kevin smiled.

 

**A Kiss on the Cheek**  
“The cheek?” Kevin asked incredulously. “I find all the big, bad alien chips and all I get is a kiss on the cheek?” Gwen rolled her eyes as he continued to complain. “Gwen, if you’re trying to win me over, it’s gonna take a lot more than a kiss on the cheek.”

“Oh, really?” Gwen countered, matching Kevin’s sly smirk perfectly. “Let me guess: in those little fantasies of yours, _Ben_ goes for a full-on lip-lock for at least, oh, ten seconds? Am I right?”

Kevin cleared his throat and continued on that line of thought in order to distract Gwen from the blush rising in his cheeks. “Yes, as a matter of fact, he does. But not just that, Gwen—sexy as it is—before the kiss happens, he says somethin’ cute, like…like…” Kevin waved a hand in the air as he fished for just the right phrase.

Gwen beat him to it. “Maybe like, ‘this is why I love you’?” she offered humouredly.

Kevin snapped his fingers and leaned over the back of his chair, getting really into the daydream. “ _Yeah_. That’s it. He has to say that. And _then_ he kisses me. Ten seconds, like you said. Oh, and he’s sitting in my lap while he’s kissing me, hands in my hair—”

Gwen shook her head and leaned forward and patted Kevin’s shoulder. “Keep dreaming, Kev. Someday, somehow, it’ll happen. In the meantime, you’ll just have to deal with my cheek-kisses.”

Kevin sighed and slumped over his chair. “I know.”

 

**Reasons**  
Elena shook her head. “You’re not doing this for old time’s sake.” She forced herself not to look behind her at the teen asleep in his chair. Ben’s eyes darted to the side for just a moment—he was doing it, too.

“No,” he agreed. “I’m doing it because I know what it’s like. To be on your own in a tough situation you never chose to be in—”

Elena stopped him. She bit her lip once, realizing that what she was about to say, she really didn’t want to. But she did anyway. “That’s not the only reason, though,” she said softly. She finally let herself turn around and look at him—Kevin. Then she glanced at Ben again and watched his Adam’s apple bob as he swallowed nervously.

“You think…?”

“I know the story,” Elena interrupted. “You didn’t trust him at first, and you feel bad about it, so you try to at least give everyone else the benefit of doubt.” A heavy silence began to settle between them, but Elena didn’t let it last very long. “It’s not weird, you know. Not to me, at least.”

Ben glanced over at Kevin as the older boy stirred in his sleep. “I didn’t ask to like him. It just…happened. He’s never going to feel the same way.” He shrugged. “And no one else but me knows how that feels.”

Elena smiled briefly and stared at him with reassuring eyes. No use in hiding it, really.

“I think I do,” she said.

 

**A Kiss on the Forehead**  
Gwen swatted Kevin away as he kissed her on the forehead. “That’s all I get?” she asked mockingly, calling Kevin on an earlier argument. “A kiss on the forehead?”

“Hey, I said you had _some_ good qualities,” Kevin countered, “not _all_ the good qualities…if you were somebody _else_ …”

Gwen rolled her eyes and punched Kevin in the shoulder. “Don’t be a jerk. I was just teasing.”

Ben stared at both of them. “Um…what are you guys arguing about?”

Kevin and Gwen laughed.

 

**Ben’s Gift**  
Kevin couldn’t help feeling a little smug as Ben walked all around his new car, admiring it from every angle. The car that Kevin had _made_ for him. Elena could never top this.

“A car,” the dark-haired girl said. “Your friend _built_ you a car.”

Ben got a dazed look on his face as he let this sink in. Of course, it didn’t have very long to sink in before Kevin decided to correct Elena on _one_ small detail.

“Ah, no, Elena. His _boyfriend_ built him a car.”

Ben’s eyes snapped up to stare at him, face suddenly the color of a strawberry. Gwen smacked her forehead.

Elena crossed her arms over her chest. “Oh, really? Well you know what, _boyfriend_?”

Kevin fixed her with a challenging stare. “What?”

“I call shotgun.”

 

**Big Ed**  
“So, Kev, I got a question for ya,” Ed said, munching on a stick of beef jerky and watching Kevin dig through spare parts. “Which Tennyson are you dating? It’s the red-head, right?”

Kevin chucked a bent muffler out of the pile and glared at Ed. “Yeah, that’s Gwen, Ed. What’s your point?”

“You’re building this car for the other one. For Ben.”

Kevin raised a brow. “Yeah, and…?”

Ed shrugged. “Just seems weird. It’s gonna be a lot of work, building this car. Shouldn’t you be giving it to your girlfriend?”

Kevin paused in his rummaging. Apparently, this was something even he hadn’t thought of. Ed realized that he may have crossed into some potentially dangerous territory.

“Dude. You’re right. Why _am_ I building this for Ben?”

“Hey, who knows? Maybe you like him better than your girlfriend, huh?” Ed joked, trying to laugh it off, but only succeeding in making a _weird_ look cross over Kevin’s face.

“I think you’re right, Ed,” he said. He seemed pretty astonished by this observation, though. “ _Damn_.” Kevin kind of froze for several seconds, so Ed sighed and shuffled up to him and clapped him on the shoulder, snapping him out of his funk.

“Eh, so you like him. Only one thing we can do about it.” Ed bit off another piece of jerky as Kevin turned to look at him.

“What’s that?”

Ed grinned. “Build him a really kick-ass car.”

 

**Shotgun: A Place in Ben’s Heart**  
The best perk of building Ben a car, Kevin decided, was calling shotgun (he’d hoped to do so from the very beginning, but Elena’d beat him to it). It was kind of silly, but each time he slipped into that passenger seat, he felt like he connected just a little more with Ben.

And really, there was just something about Ben letting him call shotgun that made him feel like he had a place in his heart.


	20. Shotgun: Dare to Hope

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set 20. This makes 200 drabbles so far.

**Shotgun: Dare to Hope**  
Ben’s new car was more than anything he could have hoped for. It was beautiful, it was fast, it could withstand almost anything, and most importantly, it had all of Kevin’s hard work and care infused into every part of it.

This was from _Kevin_. And it was _his_.

He kept that in mind every time he drove it, and every time Kevin called shotgun, he dared to hope that it was more than just a regular birthday gift.

 

**Kevin vs. Elena**  
Elena crossed her arms over her chest as Kevin glared at her, scrutinizing her. The two of them ended up staring each other down for quite a long while before anyone spoke.

“I don’t get it,” Elena said at last. “What does Ben see in you?”

“I’m wonderin’ the same thing,” Kevin responded, his jaw tightening.

“I mean, you’re rude, pushy, arrogant—” Elena went on, counting the traits on her fingers.

“So says the stubborn, selfish bitch,” Kevin interrupted. “You were just using Ben to get what you wanted.”

Elena set her hands on her hips. “Oh, and you’re so much better? Why Ben doesn’t drop you like a rock—”

“Well you know what?” Gwen suddenly shouted over the both of them. “I don’t get what Ben sees in _either_ of you.”

 

**Confining Darkness**  
The moment began as a victory. But then he was pulled into deep, imprisoning darkness and an unyielding dead-cold. For several minutes, Ben Tennyson was trapped inside his worst nightmare, and he had no connection to the world outside. No sight, no sound, except for Ghostfreak’s echoing cackle. The voice taunted him in the suffocating darkness, _‘You cannot escape me. I will destroy everything you love.’_

He couldn’t stop the bloody, horrific vision of Kevin lying dead on the ground from flashing into his mind.

Ghostfreak laughed again.

When he emerged from his dark prison (legs shaking, lungs drawing in what felt like ice), he realized that his own two hands had been trying to kill the person he loved most.

“That was really stupid, Ben,” Gwen scolded.

“We nearly got creamed in the process,” Kevin said. “We’re in this together. Or did you forget?”

Ben hadn’t trusted himself to say anything close to “I’m sorry,” or, “I had no idea what was happening.” He just grinned and cracked jokes. He felt like he’d fall apart otherwise. Because Ghostfreak was still cackling in his head, _‘I have not lost yet, Ben Tennyson. Someday I’ll rip your beloved’s head from his shoulders and leave you to clean up the mess…’_

The flight home was spent trying to force Ghostfreak out of his head; trying not to let his voice quiver whenever he spoke; trying not to close his eyes for more than half a second…

If he did, he feared he would be pulled into that confining darkness once again.

 

**Bread Crumbs**  
He’d forgotten how tedious Kevin Levin could be. No test of his wit, and painfully predictable. In a contest of pure physical strength alone, perhaps Darkstar wouldn’t be yawning behind his mask, but he had neither the time nor the desire. Elementary gymnastics and a short surge of power would do to swiftly subdue his raging, brutish opponent.

There was something to be said for Kevin’s stubbornness, he supposed. Helplessly pinned, he still struggled and growled insults that hid promised violence. “Pretty careless of you to let me track you down!”

The corners of Darkstar’s lips slyly curled. Moments like these reminded him how amusing predictability could be at times. He knew exactly how to rile Kevin Levin. He knew how to make him _truly_ violent. He’d set the leads for Kevin to follow. He’d made the moves that allowed Kevin to find him.

Hardly careless.

The first was the subtlest. He found a man, down on his luck, selling watches near a back alley in some dirt-poor neighborhood. Darkstar knocked him unconscious and left him where he knew Kevin would find him, robbing him of all but one broken green watch. The symbolism would not be entirely lost, Darkstar hoped, as it had been far too tempting not to employ.

The second was a little more his style; his modus operandi, if you will. He selected his target carefully, searching for both form and location. He chose a young, sweet brunette with green eyes; the representation was pleasantly obvious. She passed by the garage Kevin worked at, turned a corner…and was drained within seconds. Her scream caused quite a commotion, and Darkstar delighted in seeing Kevin in the resulting crowd.

The third was blatant, yet classic. The photos he’d accumulated (all bearing the image of a certain hero with telling black markings drawn on his neck…) fit neatly into a souvenir box from a local museum, and had the satisfying effect of fully revealing what the other clues had implied…that Darkstar was watching, and that he knew Kevin’s weakness all too well.

The game ended here, with Kevin following every last bread crumb he had laid down and serving his purpose. It ended with Kevin fully assured that Darkstar would never come near his precious Ben ever again.

…well. At least for now.

 

**Twinkle Rape**   
_“No one will bother us here,” Darkstar said, his eye boring into Kevin beneath the shadows of his mask. “It’s time to put the artifact to use…”_

_Kevin shifted on his feet and looked at him hesitantly. “You sure you know what you’re doin’ with that thing?”_

_“Absolutely,” Darkstar replied smoothly, holding the object between the two of them. “The artifact is designed to balance our powers…so as to bring about the utmost pleasure…”_

“For the last time, Gwen,” Kevin interrupted, his irritation growing with his headache, “Darkstar didn’t _rape_ me. Will you get that out of your little mind-movie? It’s gettin’ really obnoxious…not to mention freaky…” The last part was a mumble accompanied by a very pointed turn of the head. Gwen had only pulled out the mind-files in order to explain to Ben what had happened on the island. Kevin had protested—Ben already knew the basics; why would he need to know _everything_?—but in the end, he couldn’t stop Gwen; and now Kevin’s memory was getting interference from the terrible mental image _she_ had gotten when she’d first sensed Darkstar’s aura around Kevin. God only knows why she would get a sick image like that, but apparently it was stuck in her head, and Kevin was fed up with it.

“I’m sorry.” Gwen turned to look at him with genuine apology. “I know it’s bad, but…really, I’m not changing the memory all that much. That’s almost exactly what Darkstar said…you know, except for the ‘utmost pleasure’ part…” She blushed.

Ben sipped his smoothie slowly, appearing to be losing his appetite. “He _was_ giving you some serious ‘rape eyes,’ Kevin,” he said. A moment later, though, he seemed to regret saying it and made a face, actually putting down his smoothie cup and pushing it away. “Gwen, are you _positive_ you aren’t putting in more interference than you thought?”

Gwen nodded. “Positive. My input is definitely minimal. See?” She pointed to the bottom of the paused picture where a thin, pink line clearly marked her energy signature. She fast-forwarded through the memory and the pink line only appeared two more times, very briefly.

“That’s…not right,” Ben said lamely.

“Okay, so Darkstar’s a sick fuck,” Kevin bit out. “He says some freaky stuff sometimes, whatever. But it’s over now, so can we stop watching it?”

Gwen sighed. “Okay, Kevin. We’ll stop watching. Let me just—oops.” Gwen bit her lip as she made a slight fumble, allowing the memory to play one final scene before cutting out.

Kevin staggered towards Darkstar, short of breath and in serious pain, growling through his teeth, _“What part of ‘no, stop, don’t’ didn’t you understand?”_

The cousins’ jaws dropped, and Kevin suddenly wished he was dead.

 

**The Patient One**  
“Don’t you think it’s a little…off?”

Ben looked up from his comic book and quirked a brow at his cousin. “Do I think what’s off?”

“Kevin being ‘normal’ again,” Gwen answered. She hadn’t moved from her spot at the window. What she was looking for, Ben had no idea. “He’s hiding something.”

Ben shrugged. “So what if he is? He’ll tell us when he’s ready.”

Gwen finally turned around, but only to glare at her nonchalant cousin. “Ben! I think he might have gotten himself wrapped up in something dangerous!”

Ben gave her a deadpan stare. “Gwen, he lifts car parts all the time and he has enough weapons to outfit an entire squadron. Powers or no powers, he can take care of himself.” He closed his book and used it to make a very pointed gesture (the book being of the comic variety, however, left said gesture just kind of flopping over like a dead plant). “You’re just mad that he’s keeping secrets.”

Gwen scoffed. “What? No! That’s _not_ —” Ben quirked a brow again and she fell silent with a frustrated sigh. “You are so _arrogant_ sometimes.”

“Nah, I’m just awesome.” Satisfied that he’d won that little argument, Ben went back to reading. A car horn honked outside. Ben and Gwen both looked up.

That was their cue to go, they supposed. Gwen went outside, still blanketed with worry.

Ben followed behind her in a lighter mood. He didn’t mind being the patient one, for once. Because he knew that when Kevin was ready to tell all, _he_ would be the one to hear it first.

 

**The Impatient One: Parallel Twins**  
Gwen knew she was being impatient. She was impatient and anxious. But she wasn’t crazy.

That’s why she couldn’t figure out why she was looking at herself. In double.

“We’re parallel versions of you that exist outside of time,” one of the Gwens explained. “Call us the ‘Parallel Twins.’”

“And no, we’re not going to tell you that story,” the other added, effectively cutting off the question her original had been about to ask.

“Well, if you’re here to stop me, then I won’t let you,” Gwen said doggedly. “Darkstar did something to Kevin, and I’m going to make him fix it.”

“Of course you will.” The twins replied in unison, showing no reaction. “We’re not here to stop you, Gwen,” one continued.

“We’re here this time only to give you a message,” the other finished; and both awaited Gwen’s reaction. As it turned out, she was curious.

“What message?”

“Whatever happens will happen,” the first twin answered, her expression turning sorrowful. “But no matter what, don’t let Darkstar get in your head.”

“You might end up losing something important if you do.”

Gwen looked down only a moment to ponder the Twins’ message…only a moment, though; and when she looked up again, they had disappeared.

She had a cold feeling in the pit of her stomach. Perhaps about their message, perhaps about the thing she had first set out to do. Either way, she couldn’t afford to look back.

But she could afford to be a little more cautious.

 

**The Impatient One: Mind Game**   
_“…don’t let Darkstar get in your head.”_

It wasn’t even a question, was it? It was an automatic: don’t. It didn’t even bear thinking about…but Darkstar was far easier to ignore when he wasn’t a threat.

Gwen’s strength was leaving her too quickly, and Darkstar was getting stronger as a result. Underlying panic overtook all rationality then. And if she really thought about it…what he was saying…couldn’t _just_ be a mind game…

“So lovely, Gwen,” he said, a cruel smile on his lips, “and yet your own boyfriend prefers _Ben_ over _you_.”

“Not…true…”

“No?” Darkstar chuckled. “Oh, sweet Gwen. Have I absorbed your common sense along with your powers? Or did no one tell you how I lured Kevin to me in the first place?”

_‘No one had to…I saw it all in his memory…’_

“You are the one thing standing in the way of his perfect life.” He paused, suddenly looking contemplative. “And somehow…he pities _you_ for it.” He laughed. “Pitied, but not loved. You are truly weak in his eyes.”

_“…don’t let Darkstar get in your head.”_

“Tell me, Gwen: what will he say…when he comes to your rescue?”

Gwen forced herself not to cry. She knew exactly what he’d say.

_“Nothing matters as long as Gwen is safe!”_

Darkstar was right.

 

**Echo Echo Party**  
The glare-induced lines on Kevin’s face deepened as time grew shorter and the number of Echo Echos increased inside his car. Echo Echo vibrated constantly with sound waves, and being fully human now meant that he was more sensitive to said vibrations. If this were any other time, Kevin would have loved to see how much he and Ben could do with those vibrations, in his car, with the extra possibility of the radio blaring and creating more sound waves…

But damn it, Gwen was in trouble, and it was his fault. This wasn’t the time.

With a sheepish smile, Ben transformed and all the Echo Echos disappeared. Kevin really wished Ben would have done that before he got in the car. Because now Kevin had to drive with his lower back and spine tingling with the faded vibrations…

_‘If we come outta this alive,’_ he thought, pressing down hard on the accelerator, _‘we are gonna try that again.’_

 

**For a Second**  
For a second, he reached out in earnest, heart warming with the promise of having friends. Of having a family.

Of being loved.

For a second, he pictured running around, playing games, getting skinned knees; just _being a kid_. He pictured coming back to a warm, safe house at the end of the day. He pictured talking late at night. He pictured getting in trouble for missing curfew or not doing the dishes.

For a second, he pictured growing up. With Ben.

For a second, he reached out to take Ben’s hand, picturing all those wonderful things and wanting them so, _so_ badly. For a second, he thought he could have them.

…but only for a second.


	21. Tracking

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set 21. Featuring a drabble by Rath.

**Tracking**  
Power, Gwen understood, was something that came with flaws. Ben’s Omnitrix was full of head-scratching technological glitches. Kevin’s powers had a nasty habit of taking him over. For Gwen, being only part energy being meant a lot of very _human_ flaws. Things she couldn’t control, and also things that she needed to learn and work on little by little. Things to get better at.

Tracking was Gwen’s biggest flaw, and she knew there were many things about it that she needed to improve upon. Tracking technology was just the latest of challenges she’d been trying to overcome; a challenge that ended in her success.

But…there were more problems still to solve…one of which she was beginning to doubt she could fix: she could barely track Ben and Kevin anymore. This was because she kept getting their auras…completely mixed up.

It was certainly a shock the first time it happened—she’d tried to reign in her cousin for Julie and ended up in Kevin’s garage, with no sign of Ben whatsoever. Gwen was surprised, but not shaken; so she brushed off the incident as a fluke and thought nothing of it…until the same thing happened. Again. And again. And again. And again. It wasn’t long before she realized that the boys’ auras had become entangled with one another, almost becoming one. And after that, it wasn’t long before she came to realize why.

…let’s just say that Ben and Kevin were far easier to track when they were together.

 

**Handsome Devil**  
Kevin eyed the cube’s new transformation appreciatively. No surprises there, considering it had taken his form. Quite an ego boost.

“What d’ya say we take this handsome devil home?” Kevin asked. “See what makes him tick.”

Ben smirked. “If he’s anything like you, then I already know what makes him tick.”

Kevin chuckled.

Gwen smacked her forehead.

 

**You’re Beautiful**  
Ben wondered what it would be like to see in several different dimensions. So sue him, that alien had gotten him curious. So he spent a few hours fiddling with the Omnitrix, trying to find the DNA within its system.

…he hadn’t expected anything like this.

Gwen and Kevin had looked on as he tested out his new form’s movements and looked at things in a new light. There was something about the way this creature perceived things that was…it was just… _mind-blowing_. Completely indescribable.

The most unbelievable thing about this form was the way it allowed him to see other beings. He saw flesh and blood. He saw heart and soul. He saw everything they were now and everything they could be, everything they would turn out to be. He saw the way the world around them moved, the way the air parted with each movement.

Concerned by his stunned silence, Gwen and Kevin asked Ben what he saw. “Maybe you should change back,” Gwen said. Kevin just stepped back. Because Ben was staring.

Right. At. Him.

“Dude. You okay?”

And Ben couldn’t answer, because…he could never explain this. Seeing Kevin in this way…seeing everything he was…

He could never explain why he could suddenly look at Kevin and say, “You’re beautiful.”

 

**Pro of Rath**  
On the one hand, Rath was obnoxious. No one was going to argue that (except Rath, of course, but he argued about everything). He was dumb, loud, and didn’t listen to anyone. Kevin didn’t particularly like that.

But on the other hand, Rath was _extremely_ aggressive. Okay, maybe not a pro to some, considering his other traits, but—confession time, folks—Kevin liked that. I mean, _really_ liked it. As in, he found it attractive. Really fucking attractive.

Never one to play coy, naturally Kevin took any opportunity to provoke Ben while he was Rath. Chances were always high that he would get the desired reaction. There was usually a lot of muscle-flexing and breaking things just to show off. When he got really pissed, there was a lot of growling that sent shivers up Kevin’s spine. And when all the posturing was over, there was a fight that usually ended with Kevin pinned to the floor with over 200 pounds of sweaty, rippling Apoplexian on top of him. Hot? Very.

Somewhere along the line Ben must have figured out what was going on, because eventually the fights became less fight-like and more of an excuse for Ben to get Kevin on his back. Growls became less of a “back off” and more of a “stay put.” Displays of dominance suddenly felt more like mating rituals. Pulses rose for a different reason. Pupils dilated.

_Hot_. Really fucking _hot_.

When it came to rational thinking and delicate situations, having Rath around wasn’t such a good idea. But overall?

Yeah, Kevin was pretty sure he was more of a pro than a con.

 

**WHY TAEDENITE IS BAD, BY RATH**  
SO TAEDENITE…IS _NOT COOL _. WHY? BECAUSE…BECAUSE IT’S _NOT COOL_ , OKAY? VULKANUS IS ALWAYS AROUND IT AN’ STUFF. IT’S NOT THAT I’M SCARED OF HIM OR NOTHIN’ CUZ _RATH_ AIN’T SCARED O’ _NOBODY_ , GOT THAT?! I NEVER GET TIRED O’ KICKIN’ HIS BUTT, EITHER! PUTTIN’ HIM IN HIS PLACE. SHOW NO MERCY!__

__…YEAH._ _

__WHERE WAS I? OH YEAH. TAEDENITE. AND HOW IT SUCKS…AND STUFF. KEVIN LEVIN’S FACE IS HALF-TAEDENITE OR SOMETHIN’ RIGHT? I JUST WANNA PUNCH HIS FACE IN SOMETIMES! EXCEPT I DON’T CUZ THEN HE’D PROBABLY TURN INTO RUBBLE OR SOMETHIN’…AND HE’S STILL SORTA USEFUL. AN’ SHIT._ _

__…WHATEVER._ _

__YOU KNOW HE WOULDN’T EVEN BE PART TAEDENITE IF HE HADN’T EVER TOUCHED THE STUFF? I REMEMBER THAT. THAT WAS VULKANUS’S FAULT, TOO. AN’ I BROKE HIM INTO A BUNCH OF TINY LITTLE CRUNCHY METAL PIECES! SERIOUSLY, THEY WERE ALL OVER THE FLOOR. NOBODY MESSES WITH KEVIN LEVIN BUT ME, GOT IT?!_ _

__…WHATEVER. I’M HUNGRY._ _

__TAEDENITE STILL SUCKS._ _

__

__**Spending**  
When he asked if he could borrow the credit cube for a few project-related purposes, the answer was a suspicious eyebrow-raise and a stern, “no.” With the obligatory “ask your girlfriend for permission or she’ll get mad at you” out of the way, Kevin chose to ignore Gwen and use the gold cube anyway. That Luoadan ambassador owed them for all the trouble they’d gone to, as far as he was concerned. Where was the harm in a little spending?_ _

__There was a birthday coming up…well, two, but one of them was already decided and easily paid for. The second one was his project. Something that required high-grade stuff, like titanium armor plating, laser-proof glass and a good half a billion’s worth of Kineceleran drive installments. All that and the _time_ he planned to invest in this, which could easily pass the due date. Cars weren’t easy to put together from scratch, and this one had to be _perfect_._ _

__His own insistence on perfection was a bit unnerving at times (he was dating Gwen, wasn’t he?), but like Gwen’s answer to his request, he chose to ignore the feeling, and he used the gold credit cube to his heart’s content. It wasn’t like he was hurting anyone by spending._ _

__It _was_ for Ben’s birthday, after all._ _

__

__**Control**  
Gwen didn’t want to be one of “those” girlfriends. The kind that was desperate for attention, always on her boyfriend’s case, always wary of other girls. No girl ever wanted her boyfriend to say she was “suffocating” or “clingy” or, at the worst, “controlling.” Not even the ones that…you know, _were_._ _

__What was really sad was the fact that most girls like that didn’t start out that way. Sometimes there were events or conversations that triggered their possessiveness. A series of phone calls that he never answered…a date that he cancelled without a reason…a locket to “remember him by” before he ran off to hang out with her cousin…and the _looks_ that he _didn’t_ direct at her after that…_ _

__Then, without even realizing it, the girl grows anxious. Suddenly there’s this fear that he’d rather be around _anyone_ else other than her. Suddenly she doesn’t know when she’s going to be able to go on a date with him or spend time with him, even just as friends. He’s slipping through her fingers, and she’ll do anything to make him hers again. _Anything_._ _

__Gwen didn’t want to be that girl. She didn’t want to be that afraid or desperate or paranoid. Yet every day she became more aware of those moments when he chose to be with Ben instead of her, and those moments scared her. When was the last time Kevin had kissed her? Whatever happened to “I’d follow you anywhere”?_ _

__Deep down, Gwen knew she was turning into one of “those” girlfriends. Always seeking out Kevin’s gaze and knowing it would be elsewhere, always quick to snap at him, always suspicious of the people he talked to…of Ben…_ _

__Deep down, she knew…but she was losing control, and she needed to do something about it before it was too late._ _

__

__**Happy Birthday to Not Me**  
Two months ago, Gwen got dressed up and went out with Kevin. She sat across from him at a fancy restaurant, smiling as he tugged at his shirt collar and agonized over his dinner choice. They shared light conversation and then a tiramisu (Kevin didn’t seem too invested in either, but Gwen understood that this really wasn’t his thing), then Kevin took her home and kissed her, mumbling out an awkward, but sweet “happy birthday” before he left. Overall, Gwen counted the evening a success._ _

__Now, she’s looking at a sleek black-and-green Mazda and wondering where it all went wrong. Suddenly she recognizes all the signs and realizes that she was the only one enjoying their date that night. Now, as Ben admires his new car, she notices the smile on Kevin’s face._ _

___This_ (even two months later, Gwen realizes) is a “happy birthday”…and it’s not hers._ _

__

__**Toxic**  
Anyone that had had the opportunity to look Ben Tennyson in the eyes always seemed to describe them same way: “Toxic green. They’re this…toxic green color.”_ _

__Toxic. The things that came to Kevin’s mind were radioactive waste, gas fumes and oil spills. Ben’s eyes were…well…_ _

__Whenever Kevin looked at those eyes, he would feel a shock spread throughout his whole body; silent, subtle, but powerful just the same. He would feel drawn in, even though he knew he shouldn’t be. He would feel this…dangerous, yet comforting warmth flowing through his veins…_ _

__Like poison._ _

__Maybe toxic was the right word after all._ _

__

__**Studio Audience**  
“Ben,” Gwen said, rubbing her temples, “what on _any planet_ made you think it was a _good idea_ to sign a contract for a _TV show_?”_ _

__Ben grinned sheepishly and half-shrugged. “It…seemed like a good idea at the time…was what I said…can’t really say why…” He trailed off, pouting. “The guy talked fancy at me. He was very persuasive.”_ _

__Kevin ruffled his hair. “And that’s why you’re not allowed to do any thinking.”_ _

__“Your support is heart-warming,” Ben replied dryly._ _

__Gwen folded her arms over her chest. “Seriously, Ben. This is a _huge_ invasion of privacy. I’m not letting any cameras into my house. None.” Kevin got a shifty look and sat up straight in his chair._ _

__“Yeah, now that you mention it…”_ _

__“Kevin, if I find out you’re trafficking weapons again—”_ _

__“Hey, whoa, whoa.” Kevin threw his hands up just as Gwen’s eyes started to glow purple. Best to change the subject. “It’s not like I don’t mind havin’ my handsome face on TV, but…” He jerked his thumb behind him. “Those guys are a little much.”_ _

__The trio groaned as a chorus of laughter punctuated Kevin’s statement._ _


	22. Laugh Track

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set 22. May contain smut.

**Laugh Track**  
It started with a chuckle. He tried to stop after that, but soon there was another chuckle. Realizing it was useless to resist, he let go completely, practically bending over his steering wheel with laughter.

“Kevin!” Gwen snapped from the back seat. “Eyes on the road!”

“Sorry, sorry.” Kevin let his laughter die down to the occasional snort and got his focus back on driving.

“It wasn’t _that_ funny,” Ben said, rolling his eyes; though he was smiling too. Julie, also in the back seat, glared at him.

“That’s right, Ben. It wasn’t funny.”

“Hey, it wasn’t _my_ fault Ship decided to crawl down your shirt and then shock everyone in the Mr. Smoothy line.”

“It also wasn’t your fault that the shock carried over to the smoothie machine and blew it up,” Kevin added, his voice cracking a little.

“Right,” Gwen said, her voice filled with a flatness that would make the plains of Africa jealous. “It also wasn’t your one-liner that made the studio audience following us everywhere start laughing.”

Ben grinned. “Free refills for everybody!”

And then he and Kevin were off again, pounding on the dashboard and cackling like hyenas.

Laughter, even of the studio audience variety, was contagious.

 

**Tender Moment**  
There they were. Standing around the photographer. Trying to blend in with the rest of the bridesmaids and cooing over the happy couple smiling and shoving cake in each other’s faces.

“Un. Believable.”

“Seriously. Who invited those freaks?” Kevin chomped on his fifth cocktail wienie. Both he and Ben were hanging out by the hors d'oeuvres table, a safe distance away from the studio audience—and Gwen, who by this point looked to be literally steaming (probably actually waves of manna rising off her, not that that was any less threatening). She’d been helping with wedding preparations for weeks, and had even organized Cathleen’s bridal shower. When she found out who had brought the studio audience to her brother’s wedding, she was going to kill them.

Ben stirred the ranch dip with a carrot. “Well, at least Cathleen seems to be enjoying the attention.” He ended his sentence with a crunch to the carrot. He wrinkled his nose at the taste. “Woops. Too much dip.”

“No such thing,” Kevin said, scooping up some of the ranch with his finger. Ben stared.

“Great. Now nobody can have dip.”

“What? I washed my hands.” Kevin grinned. “Here, I’ll prove it. You try some.” He moved his ranch-covered finger towards Ben’s mouth, only get him on the nose when Ben jerked away.

“Aw, gross, Kevin.” But Ben was grinning now, too; and as a man, he had to retaliate. Before he knew it, he and Kevin were laughing and smearing each other’s faces with the ranch dip, completely wrapped up in their playful moment.

A heart-stopping chorus of “Awwwwww!”put their fun to an end. It was unnerving how stealthily that studio audience had moved—all those pairs of feet and the boys hadn’t heard a sound.

With those over-attentive people watching, both boys turned red and scrambled for napkins, dearly hoping that there weren’t any cameras around.

 

**The Kiss**  
“Fuck. I am fucking tired. Fuck!” Kevin added for good measure. Gwen stopped in mid-bite of her burger.

“Kevin, that’s a curse word, not a quotation mark,” she said, returning to her food.

“He’s trying to get the TV producers to take us off the air,” Ben explained. “He figures if he says ‘fuck’ enough times, they’ll either cancel us or move us to HBO.”

“Abso-fucking-lutely!” Kevin pounded the table, making other restaurant-goers pause uneasily. Kevin grabbed a handful of fries and wolfed them down. “These fries are fucking great! Fucking awesome!”

Gwen raised a brow. “And the shouting is because…?”

Ben sighed. “I spent the night at his place last night and…well, the studio audience followed us. Apparently they found us interesting. We didn’t really get much sleep.”

“I see. And exactly why are two sleeping teenage boys interesting?”

Ben looked to the side and sipped his drink. Kevin pounded the table again.

“Because!” he shouted. “ _This_ kept fucking happening!” With that, he grabbed the collar of Ben’s jacket and tugged him forward—Ben choked for a moment as he was ripped away from his soda—and kissed him on the mouth. From their own booth in the restaurant, the studio audience chimed in with a, “Wooooooo!”

Kevin finished the kiss with a, “Fuck!”

 

**A Clean Hit**  
“Sorry,” Gwen said, straightening her blouse as she stood up, “didn’t feel like being left behind this time.”

As she finished her statement, she noticed two things: One, that Ben had stood up and was brushing imaginary dirt off the seat of his pants; and two, that Kevin had a grin on his face that did not come from crashing onto the hard, dusty ground of an alien planet. Considering this and the fact that she was the only one that had landed on her ass, Ben’s earlier cry of “Dude!” probably wasn’t because Kevin was heavy.

“It was a clean hit,” Kevin said. Gwen flicked a bolt of manna at his head. “Ow!”

“No,” she countered. “ _That_ was a clean hit.”

 

**Tips and Hips**  
“Gwen, this really isn’t the time to be asking for boyfriend advice.” Ben gestured to the oddly-colored trees around them. “We’re kind of in a situation, in case you haven’t noticed.”

Gwen rolled her eyes. “Yeah, I _know_ , but—” she glanced at Kevin, then quickly lowered her voice, “—but he doesn’t pay attention to how I feel anymore. I get that he’s not comfortable about how he looks right now, but…I just wish he’d _act_ like he still likes me.”

Now it was Ben’s turn to roll his eyes. Oh, sweet payback. “This isn’t rocket science, Gwen. You’re thinking too hard.”

Gwen frowned. “How so?”

“Well…” Ben mulled something over as strange fauna chattered over their heads. “Look,” he said finally, “I’ll show you a little trick. Just pay close attention, okay?”

And with a knowing gesture he charged ahead, stumbling through thick vines, grumbling curses, and being generally whiny. Only a few seconds after he’d started, Kevin brushed past him to clear the way, and uttered the first words Gwen had heard from Kevin in the past hour.

“After you, hero,” was actually quite a charming phrase. Even if it was meant to be condescending.

Gwen shook her head. “Truly, I have much to learn,” she said to herself.

Ben spent the next fifteen minutes complaining and provoking witty insults from Kevin. And also pouting. And huffing. And swinging his hips in an exaggeratedly _feminine_ way.

“I never knew you could be so…” Gwen wrinkled her nose. “ _Camp_.”

Ben sighed theatrically. “I have so much to teach you.” And he walked on.

Still swinging his hips.

 

**The Parallel Twins: Daring Rescue**  
She’d hoped when she next saw the Twins, they’d be more supportive…helpful; like they were the last time. They were more somber then, and their message was direct. But wherever—whenever?—they’d come from this time, it was a place where they could afford to be more playful and self-assured. Not unlike another time-traveler she knew…

In any case, she didn’t expect them to be lounging on her bed; rummaging through her things; smiling with a secret in their eyes as they teased her. How was this helpful?

“So how long do you think the boys were under there before she decided to ‘help out’?”

There was a sigh and a noncommittal hand-wave. “Oh, I don’t know…three…four seconds, maybe?” This twin pulled a light blue sweater out of Gwen’s closet. “Oh, I remember this—can I have it? I need a little more variety in my wardrobe.”

Gwen snatched the sweater away. “No! Stop going through my clothes—your clothes—our…?” She sighed. “Take the sweater.” She flopped down on her bed next to the other twin, who was smiling cheekily at her.

“Kevin did say ‘I got this,’” the twin said, mimicking Kevin down to the forehead-wrinkling scowl. “I’m sure there was no reason to worry.”

Gwen looked at her. “Yeah.” She looked at the floor. “But Kevin…he has a tendency to jump into things too fast, and Ben…Ben didn’t have the Omnitrix…”

“And you,” the now blue-sweatered twin added, “have a tendency to think too much. Reason and irrationality; both in your brain at a moment’s notice.”

“So, now that there’s nothing else to think about,” the other twin continued, “your mind is saying, ‘He didn’t even hesitate. What a daring rescue.’”

“Well…” Gwen’s shoulders slumped. “It was really brave of him…”

The twin on her bed gave her a soft smile. “Look, we need to go. But we wanted to tell you to keep your head high and don’t look back, no matter what happens.”

“Trust us. You’ll laugh about all this later.” The sweater-wearing twin adjusted her sleeves. “Really, we just saw you in the future, and you were definitely laughing about it.” A pause. “Oh, and also, thanks for the sweater.”

Gwen looked up, hoping to stop them; a million questions on her lips (Will Kevin be okay? Am I losing him? Will things get better for us?) but in an instant, the Twins were gone, just like before.

 

**Pretty Princess**  
“You kept one of the fancy headbands? Why?”

Kevin snatched the headband away from Ben. “It’s a Neural Inhibitor. And I kept it so I could take it apart and see how it works; figure out how we can use it to our advantage. This is useful tech.”

“Uh-huh. I think it looks like a tiara.” Ben smirked, placing the headband on Kevin’s head before the mutant could react. “See? You look like a pretty princess.”

Kevin scoffed. “Yeah, sure. All princesses look like rejected museum pieces.”

Ben’s smirk grew. “ _My_ princess does.”

Kevin threw the headband at him.

 

**Important Things**  
“You gonna say something or are you gonna just keep staring at me?”

Azmuth blinked out of his thoughts for a moment. “Is it bothering you?” The Galvan didn’t give Kevin a chance to answer. “I’m simply wondering how you know him so well. Ben, that is.”

Kevin made a face. “Huh?”

“I was convinced that Ben was simply trying to be a hero, without thinking of the consequences, when he made his offer to Vilgax,” Azmuth said thoughtfully. “I wanted to stop him. And yet, I seem to recall someone telling me to ‘button it.’” His mouth curved in a smile as Kevin blushed. “I hadn’t the slightest idea that he had a plan all along. You, however…somehow knew.”

Kevin rubbed the back of his head. “It’s not like…I know him _that_ well…” he mumbled.

“You know what is most important,” Azmuth replied. “And that makes you his best ally.”

Kevin was silent for a moment. Whether he had been left confused or was seriously taking in Azmuth’s words; his expression didn’t reveal anything.

“Look, the Plumbers are gonna have a ship here soon, so…” He trailed off; paused. “Just…one thing?” He shifted on his feet. Azmuth waited. “The most important thing I know about Ben I learned when I was eleven. And that’s to never underestimate him. Ever.”

Azmuth tilted his head. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

They caught up with the other two and didn’t say another word after that.

 

**Important Things: Rubbing It In**  
Okay, she got it. Kevin had known the whole time that Ben had a plan. He was fucking brilliant. Sure.

Did he _have_ to rub it in?

“Ben! Noooo!” he cried in fake girlish distress, striking a dramatic pose and clutching his hands; all in favor of teasing her.

Ass.

“I was just trying to help Ben trick Vilgax,” Gwen said matter-of-factly, even though that was a complete lie.

Kevin grinned that please-punch-me-in-the-face grin. “Suuure,” he said. “Keep telling yourself that.”

Gwen glared at his back as he caught up to Ben, keeping his stride right behind him.

Those two were a lot closer than even they realized. It was a fact that kept coming back to haunt her, and at the worst moments. After an entire summer of alien fighting and adventure, Gwen had thought that there were things about Ben only she was privy to. Moments like this stung her pride.

Kevin knew things about Ben that even she didn’t know. Bigger things. Deeper things.

Important things.

…but did he _seriously_ have to rub it in?

 

**Who’s the Hero?**  
God, that phrase.

It belongs in the bedroom, whispered hoarsely in his ear like this, with Ben filling him so deep and pressed so close that he can feel that toned stomach against this lower back. The room is so dark and their skin so hot that it feels like they’re strangers and lovers at the same time.

Ben’s fingers tangle in his sweaty hair and pull back, tugging at his scalp and sending a jolt of something pretty fucking amazing straight to his cock.

“Who’s the hero?” Ben whispers.

Sweat trickles down his exposed throat. His Adam’s apple bobs painfully as he swallows. “Gah…fuck…”

“Who’s the hero?” Ben repeats, jerking his hips for emphasis. Kevin groans.

“Uhn…you are.”

Ben pulls back a little this time, picking up a new rhythm, thrusting hard and deep. “Come on…one more…time…”

Kevin moans.

“You’re the hero.”


	23. Confidante

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set 23.

**Confidante**  
Lips wrapped around the straw of a raspberry-mocha smoothie and eyes set on her boyfriend-turned-best-friend, she got to business. “Okay,” she said, “spill to Julie.”

She took her role as Ben’s confidante very seriously.

Ben took a long, exaggerated slurp of his smoothie and shot a glare at a nearby lamppost. “Gwen’s turning him into a sniveling wuss.”

By “him,” of course Ben meant Kevin. He never actually complained about anyone else. Julie found that took a lot of guesswork out of things.

She smiled with her teeth still clenched around her straw. “How so?”

“He got upset because she didn’t care that he broke her doorbell.” Ben rolled his eyes. “‘It’s _code_ ,’ he says. ‘It means she doesn’t care about _me_.’ Since when is he such a fucking expert on ‘girl code’?” He then grumbled something that sounded like “Tea leaves toga bear,” but was far more likely to be something that made a little more sense.

“So, what happened then?”

Ben sighed heavily and plopped his chin in his hand. “I said something sarcastic and went to watch football. And he decided to… _mope_ the whole time.” He suddenly slammed his smoothie cup onto the bench table, his shoulders squaring indignantly. “Football, Julie! The most sacred of man-rituals! Is it too much to ask to leave Gwen problems out of _football_?”

Julie forced back a giggle as she watched him settle into a pout, like a naughty kid stuck in a corner. “He didn’t snap out of it, huh?”

“No.” Ben sighed again. “I tried asking him to come to Mr. Smoothy to cheer him up, but he didn’t budge until I mentioned inviting Gwen. Then _she_ hugs him out of _nowhere_ …yesterday sucked.” The sound of the last few drops of smoothie leaving Ben’s cup signaled the end of his rant, at which point he slowly deflated, like a balloon leaking air.

The silence filled the entire space, leaving little room for comfort to pass through. This was always the hardest part of being the supportive friend. What to do after the anger had passed?

“Well…” Julie patted Ben’s shoulder and met his eyes with a smile, “…if you ask me, Kevin’s very lucky to have someone who loves him as much as you do.”

Ben smiled.

That…that was the best part.

 

**Overkill Secret**  
Her time-traveling twin could have told her any number of things. The method she used in organizing her spellbooks, where she hid all her “guilty pleasure” music, or yes, her locker number. Anything but _that_.

After all, she still got the chills when she sat in the back seat of Kevin’s car.

 

**Regret**  
Not for the first time, Gwen wondered what horrible future she had prevented when she stopped Ben and Kevin from hacking the Omnitrix. The thought had passed only as a minor curiosity before, appearing in small moments when the device timed out or gave Ben the wrong alien. Minor glitches were bound to happen and brought only vague imaginings of how things could have been different.

Otherwise, life was…successful; at times truly wonderful. Ben had defeated Vilgax effortlessly, the group went on to enjoy their summer with very few interruptions, and Gwen got to enjoy more and more of Kevin’s company (whenever she could tear him away from ‘boy time,’ that is). Her curiosities became forgettable in the face of normal, happy things.

Happiness, she now realized, had made them all complacent; especially herself. Whatever it was that she had stopped that day in the warehouse, it was better than being here, hiding beneath a crumbling roof and a weakening manna shield. She looked at the ground in front of her, thrashed down to gravel by the horde of rock monsters advancing on them. With nothing but dirt to touch, Kevin had been unable to protect himself…so now…

Seeing him this way was wrong. They’d had no bandages, so Ben had wrapped Kevin’s injuries with Spidermonkey’s webbing. The sticky threads supported Kevin’s broken left arm and dislocated shoulder; bound his chest where there were surely broken ribs. The pain had him shaking and sweating. All Gwen could do was hold his hand while Ben tried to keep him warm and calm, holding him close and stroking his hair with a three-fingered hand.

_‘I can’t keep this up…’_

With an ominous _crack_ , Gwen’s shield gave, and she, along with the rest of the house, collapsed. The sound of Charmcaster’s gloating barely touched her ears, but Ben and Kevin’s shouts were clear. Gwen’s powers were being pulled from her, along with her life.

The last thing she felt was regret.

 

**Twisting the Knife**  
“Wakey, wakey, Benjamin. It’s feeding time.”

Ben shook his head, trying to block out the routine sounds of Charmcaster’s mocking drawl, the iron door creaking, the plodding stone footsteps coming closer to where he was chained. He tried to ignore the figure in front of him holding the tin feeding dish under his nose.

But as always, he opened his eyes.

He’d never get used to seeing Kevin this way, eyes glowing, but with no life in them. He’d given up on himself, knowing that Gwen was dead and convinced that Ben was, too. Charmcaster had toyed with him past his breaking point, pounding it into his head that the entire thing was his fault. Once his spirit was gone, the witch robbed Kevin of his will as well, making him her servant.

Ben had plenty of time to come up with all the clichés that applied to this twisted joke of hers. Ordering this cold, hollow shell to give Ben food and water, keeping him alive just to repeat this cruel game over and over again.

Salt in the wounds. Adding insult to injury. Kicking him while he’s down. Beating a dead horse.

Following Gwen’s death and the world’s surrender to Hex, Ben could think of only one that truly described how he felt.

Seeing Kevin now was just twisting the knife.

 

**Memento**   
_“You kept his sweaty handkerchief?”_

Okay, so maybe he wasn’t one to talk. Because there it was, in his memory box. Lying there, glaring at him dully in the light of his bedroom, silently accusing him of being a hypocrite.

Which he kind of was.

Really, who was he to criticize about a sweaty handkerchief when he had a broken padlock in a box inside his closet?

 

**Appropriate Response**  
Kevin was a guy with a temper; that was never a question. Was it fixable? That required a little thought. Being one with a rational mind, Gwen did come to the conclusion that, yes, it was fixable. Kevin just needed a little help from time to time; someone to teach him how to approach things more calmly. Gwen devised a sort of anger management plan, and little by little helped Kevin along a less violent path.

Then Ben got sick, and two weeks of work was gone in just ten minutes.

Speeding. Illegal U-turns. Honking. Missiles. Unnecessary off-roading. General impatience.

For a _smoothie_. How was this conducive to a healthy temperament?

Well, considering that Kevin seemed to calm down once Ben got his smoothie, Gwen figured she could find a way to fix this, too.

 

**Pieced Together**  
Everyone waited while Ben patted himself down after his transformation, making sure he was in one piece. No one had been entirely sure that a pile of Diamonhead would turn into a whole Ben.

“Everything where it’s supposed to be?” Kevin asked.

Ben sneezed. “Just like before.”

Kevin nodded. “Well, we’ll have to make extra sure later. Y’know, when you’re not sick and no one’s around.” He grinned.

Gwen smacked her forehead.

 

**Being the Bad Guy**  
“Being the bad guy is all in the attitude, Ben. What have I told you?”

“Fifty-percent arrogance, fifty-percent badass,” Ben recited blandly. “Yes. You’ve said that several times.” He sighed and leaned back in his seat. “Isn’t ‘badass’ more your style, though? I think I should go with something a little more…subtle.”

Kevin raised a brow. “Subtle how?”

Ben gave him a blank stare. “Like a little less Jason Voorhees and a little more Hannibal Lecter.” Kevin snorted.

“What? You gonna eat their livers with some fava beans and a nice chianti?”

Ben smirked. “Maybe.”

Kevin smirked right back. “Just make it believable, hero.” Both boys looked up at the crackling of a transmission. Max’s voice buzzed in through the ship’s speakers.

_“Ben, it’s time to start. Head into the satellite.”_

“That’s your cue.” Kevin pressed the button to open the door. “All set.”

Ben smiled. “Hold on. You forgot something.”

Before Kevin could ask what it was, Ben was sauntering over, smiling seductively. He leaned over Kevin; Kevin leaned in for a kiss.

On his lips, he felt warm air and he heard Ben whisper, “I’m not the hero. I’m the bad guy.”

Kevin cursed as Ben left the ship.

 

**Out in Space**  
When Kevin starts laughing about it, Ben is more than a little irritated. He’s already annoyed that he’d been thrown out into space, and Kevin’s lack of sympathy is just making things worse.

Then Gwen reminds him just how fast Kevin had flown to pick him up and Ben suddenly feels a lot better.

 

**Teamwork and Team Leaders**  
 _‘Is it too much to ask for a little cooperation?’_ Pierce thought. _‘Teamwork, guys! This isn’t hard to figure out!’_

And yet, here he was, all by himself in a dangerous satellite, sporting several bruises and constantly looking over his shoulder for Ben Tennyson. If the rest of his team had actually listened to him in the first place and stuck together, they probably could have knocked Ben out by now and gotten back to looking for Max.

_‘Alan tried to stay with me, at least. Hope he’s okay.’_

Pierce was the leader of the team (though Manny liked to argue otherwise). He should have been able to get the others to follow his orders. If Ben could get someone like _Kevin_ to listen to him without question, then Pierce could certainly get the same from his team…right?

Suddenly there was a series of crashes and what sounded like Manny and Rath—yelling, as usual. _‘First things first,’_ Pierce thought, _‘get the team back together, then finish the mission.’_

Maybe, just maybe, if Ben ever stopped being crazy, Pierce would ask him how he handled a real team.


	24. The Passionate Yearnings of His Soul

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set 24. Featuring some drabbles inspired by an amazing fic called Zombie Swarm and a Christmas drabble that never made it to lj.

**The Passionate Yearnings of His Soul**  
“Why’s he so mean to you?” Julie asked. Ben just shrugged.

“It makes him happy.”

As the couple walked off, Julie giggling about something or another, a figure emerged from behind one of the Pier’s entrance posts.

“Ben Tennyson.” Kevin scowled as he watched the two. “Even after five years he’s still a loser. What a wimp. What a little jerk. How I hate him.” A quick glance to the left; to the right. “And yet…”

With a sigh, Kevin pulled a locket from his shirt and gazed at the face there. “…how I love him! If only I could reveal to him my true feelings. If only I could tell him how much I have longed for him all these years. Oh, Benji, my love!”

In the midst of Kevin’s passionate ramblings, he heard the sound of heavy breathing. He turned around to find…

“Gwen? What’re you doing here?” A pause. “And why are you breathing so heavily?”

“Oh, I’ve had asthma since I was four,” Gwen wheezed. “Which reminds me, have you seen my inhaler?”

“…no.”

Kevin tucked the locket away and didn’t say another word.

 

**Proper Motivation**  
Gwen was sighing and Ben was flopped over on the mat they had set up in the Tennysons’ basement when Kevin walked in. The question he’d been about to ask tumbled away; the scene before him seemed to give him his answer. He settled for an eyebrow raise and an awkward, “Uhhh…”

Gwen gave him a flat look as Ben groaned from his spot on the floor. “Mana-wielding practice has hit a very large wall, if you were wondering,” she said, crossing her arms. “Ben can’t seem to focus his energies at all.” Gwen nudged her cousin with her foot. Ben rolled over, groaning again.

“Yeah, I’d kinda guessed you were having problems.” Kevin gave Ben a pitying smile. “You gonna live, dude?”

“Maybe if I can get a _break_ ,” Ben said. “She’s been drilling me for _hours_. I’m so exhausted; a Grey Matter could knock me over.”

“We could go for a smoothie break,” Kevin suggested with a hopeful glance at Gwen.

Gwen sighed again and shook her head. “Fine. We’re done for today.” Gwen paused then, a strange look crossing over her face. “ _If_ you can do one more thing for me.”

Ben frowned, struggling to sit up. “What?”

Gwen smirked. “Show Kevin what I’ve taught you today.”

Ben blinked. “ _Oh_.” Then the same smirk grew on his face. “Oh.”

Before Kevin even had a chance to be suspicious, a coil of blue mana had wrapped itself around his waist and was pulling him towards Ben. He landed on top of the other boy with a very unmanly yelp.

Ben “oofed” as Kevin fell on him. “How was that, Gwen?” he asked.

Gwen chuckled. “Actually, that was the best you’ve done all day. Kevin should come practice with us tomorrow, too.”

Kevin groaned. “I hate you both.”

 

**Tracking Practice**  
“Okay, so…what are we doing? Oh—and I haven’t washed the sheets yet; you might not wanna sit there.”

Gwen opted to stand just in the nick of time. “Right…anyway, today we’re practicing finding the location of living things. Kevin is somewhere in Bellwood, and I want you to find him.”

“Sounds easy enough.” Except that it didn’t. “Um…so…what do I do?”

“Well, eventually I’m hoping you’ll be able to pick out his mana signature in the atmosphere and find his location from there, but we’ll wait on that until you’re a little more experienced.”

Ben blinked at her. “Uh…huh.”

“For now, we can use something of Kevin’s to track him with. Something he’s touched recently would be best.” Gwen eyed the bed again. “And considering what you two do in here, I’m willing to bet there’re things like that all over this room.”

Ben frowned and raised a brow. “Nice, Gwen. You know, just for that…” He crouched down to the floor by a stray blanket and pulled a pair of black briefs out from under it. He smirked at Gwen’s horrified expression. “He left these here yesterday.”

Gwen’s lip curled. “Guh…just find your boyfriend. I’ll wait outside.”

She didn’t have to wait long.

 

**Meditation**  
“Kevin, you sit over there. Ben, stop fidgeting. This is important.” Gwen settled herself in a perfect meditative pose while Ben did his best to sit up straight in front of her. He endured many disapproving eyebrow-raises while Kevin relaxed in a beanbag chair across from them. To be fair, though, Kevin looked about as bored as he felt.

“What am I doing here, exactly?”

Gwen huffed at Kevin impatiently. “Ben needs something to focus on. Surprisingly, asking him to clear his head is too much on his own—” She ignored the protest from Ben (“What d’you mean, ‘surprisingly’?”) and continued, “—so I figured having something to center his energies on would prevent him from _projecting_ his energies all over the room.” Kevin followed Gwen’s eyes over the walls, where there was plenty of evidence that the last time Ben tried to meditate, it hadn’t gone very well.

“Gotcha. So I’m just supposed to sit here and look pretty.” Kevin leaned back, folding his hands behind his head. “I can do that.”

Gwen stared at him for a moment. “Right. Sure. Do that, then.” She closed her eyes. “Ben, start concentrating.”

Then, there was silence. For the first few minutes, anyway. Kevin was bored, and Ben’s face twitched every now and again; but otherwise everything seemed to be going well. No one even noticed that Kevin was starting to levitate until he and the beanbag were halfway to the ceiling.

“Hey…hey! Ben! A little too much concentrating!”

It took a few more minutes to get Kevin down, but Gwen felt like this was an improvement.

 

**Fear**  
It was like standing in the heart of a freak thunderstorm, and twice as horrifying. Lightning crackled everywhere, bright and violent, making light bulbs burst and igniting fires. She held her husband in her arms and watched the angry storm grow and grow around that tiny frame, tears raining down her cheeks. A wild scream rang out with a new burst of lightning. It rocked her body just like thunder.

“ Kevin, stop it! _PLEASE_!”

She saw her son turn to her, his eyes glowing, and the fear clawed at her skin.

“ _You won’t tell me what to do ever again_!”

 

**Fear: Mother’s Love**  
Her heart trembles and she freezes in place when she sees the state of her house. It’s as if a massive fist has punched through it, taking out the entire front door and most of the furniture inside. No amount of human power could have done this. She sees Kevin’s car parked in front, and immediately she is flooded with memories of violent rage and a little boy with enormous, terrifying power. The memories are old, but the fear is still fresh.

Her heartbeat speeds up with each step towards her broken home. _‘Not again,’_ she thinks, _‘Not again, please, not again…’_ Her heart drops to her stomach when she hears her son call for her. The fear leaves her completely when Kevin hugs her, as tight as he can but still gently; and she’s ashamed that she has to keep reminding herself that he is not a violent animal, but her son.

He’s also very much a grown man. Why would she expect to see that same little boy from so long ago?

When she hugs him back, it’s not to reassure herself that he has changed, but to reassure him that his mother loves him.

 

**Fear: The Wayward Son**  
When he finally comes to the new house, he’s terrified. He’s spent years wondering how his mother would look at him when he saw her again; and when he imagines her face, it’s never positive. What he remembers most about her is the fear that he caused her the night his powers went berserk. What reason would she have to feel anything less now?

A piece of paper trembles in his hands; the address he has arrived at written in Gwen’s perfect cursive. He’s grateful to her. He hadn’t meant to let it slip that he hadn’t seen his mom in years, and she never gave him a hard time about it. For a while he thought she’d forgotten about it completely…until she slipped him the address, without a word. He doesn’t know how she found it, but he doesn’t want her efforts to go to waste. It’s that, more than anything, that pushes him to knock on the door.

He tries to greet his mother with a smile, but it turns out wobbly and eventually gets weighted down with uncertainty. He feels the air between them go still as she stands there, frozen, staring at him. She looks torn between different emotions; he’s not sure which ones. He doesn’t know whether they’re good or bad. He doesn’t know what he should say.

“Mom,” he says at last, “I’m so sorry.”

His still-shaking hands drop the piece of paper as his mother throws her arms around him.

 

**Thirty Minutes**  
“I’ll be back in thirty minutes,” Gwen said before she dashed out the door; something about an errand for her mother.

Kevin and Ben thought that thirty minutes was enough time. They, unfortunately, miscalculated and had an awful lot of explaining to do when Gwen came back.

 

**Moving Day**  
“Ben, I’m not letting you bring all your trophies into the apartment.” Kevin eyed the box of glittering gold with some amazement. “We’ll find a warehouse or somethin’ for you to put ‘em in…how d’you even fit all that shit in your closet…?”

Ben rolled his eyes and heaved the heavy box onto his bed. “Oh, sure, I don’t get my trophies—don’t think I didn’t see you stashing that extra box of level 5s into your trunk. Why don’t you get a warehouse for those things?”

“Hey, it’s a scary neighborhood,” Kevin said, as though it were a universal fact, “we’ll need those for protection.”

Ben held up the Omnitrix by way of a retort; but otherwise he didn’t say anything and just sat down on his bed. “I can’t believe we’re getting our own place.”

“I can’t believe I’m _sharing_ a place with _you_ of all people.” Kevin grinned. “One bedroom.”

“Yeah, well…” Ben stood up again and picked up his trophy box, heading for the door, “…I guess you’ll just have to sleep on the couch, then.”

Kevin was left to wonder whether or not he was teasing as he walked out to the car.

 

**T’is the Season**  
Christmas was a busy time of year.

“Ben, on your left! Your other left; _your other left_!”

There were Christmas cards to mail, presents to buy, appearances to make at charity drives and shopping malls…Four Arms was a surprisingly popular Santa Claus.

“Kevin, he’s getting away!”

“Keep your shirt on, Ben, I got him!”

Kevin’s mother had insisted on Ben having dinner with them on Christmas Eve. He was looking forward to that, even though he’d probably wind up being a buffer between Kevin and Harvey all night (those two could argue about everything from the Christmas lights to the proper way to shovel snow). Stuff like that just made him feel—cheesy as it sounded—part of his boyfriend’s family.

“Gwen, I need cover! I’m taking this thing down, now!”

“I’ve got your back, Ben!”

He had a few more robots to smash before all that, of course. But that was part of Christmas, too. Sort of.

Hunks of charred metal fell to the ground like the first snow of the season. Ben, Gwen and Kevin looked around proudly at their work. Kevin threw an arm around Ben as the other let his transformation drop. Gwen brushed some stray hairs out of her face and caught her breath.

“Just about three more of these things to go,” Kevin said.

Ben sighed. “Ah, the holidays.”

Christmas was a busy time of year.


	25. Watching

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set 25.

**Watching**  
She notices how moody her son has been lately. She sees him closing off, shutting out; and she worries. She’s lost her boy once before, to things going on inside himself, and she doesn’t want to see it happen again. She wants to reach out, but doesn’t know how. Kevin’s almost a grown man, now, and she’s not sure who he is.

She notices, or at least she thinks she notices, someone else watching. A person she knows (better, she thinks sometimes, than she knows her own son), always visiting, checking in, all of her worries mirrored in bright green eyes. “Is Kevin home?” he asks. “No? Well…tell him I stopped by, okay?”

She wonders if Kevin ever sees this side to his own friend. Wonders if he sees Ben reaching out for him, trying to make contact. Wonders, shamefully, if it’s all right to put her hopes into Ben, because she’s not sure she can reach Kevin the way that a friend could.

Wonders if it’s okay to smile (weary smile that it is) as the two leave together, and to say, “Watch out for each other.”

She notices, or at least she thinks she notices, that at least Kevin smiles as Ben tells her, “Would we do anything else?”

 

**The Idiot**  
“Kevin Ethan Levin, you are an _idiot_ ,” Kevin told the reflection in his rear-view mirror. He’d hoped he’d said it quietly enough that Ben wouldn’t hear it from the backseat.

Too bad “annoyingly good hearing” was apparently on the list of Reasons Why Ben Tennyson is a Fucking Pest.

The hero blankly said, “Yeah, no arguments here,” with a roll of the eyes that made Kevin want to climb back there and punch him in the teeth.

“Wasn’t talkin’ to you, pipsqueak.” Kevin smirked a little at Ben’s scowl.

“Whatever.” Ben turned to glare out the window. “Quit talking to yourself so loud.”

Kevin could have responded to that, kept the banter going for as long as he wanted—and it would have felt good. It would have felt normal, better than how he’d felt for the entire evening before this. But he didn’t continue arguing, because, as he’d already said…he was an idiot.

“Don’t talk to her like that”? Really? _That_ was his excuse for slamming on the brakes, almost careening off the road and damaging his precious car? He’d caught the puzzled looks that he’d gotten from both the Magister and the person he had supposedly been defending. The only person in the car that was dumber than Kevin was Ben, who had totally taken that outburst seriously.

He’d panicked. That was his only defense for what he’d said. He’d panicked because he was actually happy to see the hero; glad to see that cocky-ass smirk and hear his obnoxious, self-centered bantering. He’d been glad, for a moment, that nothing had changed. And then…

_“Don’t say that! He’s not dead!”_

He never thought he’d hear Ben so…serious. Even more, he never thought his heart would twist so violently at the sound. So he’d panicked, and shouted the first thing that came to mind.

He was a total dumbass.

“Kevin, pay attention!” Another voice, outside the car, snapped him out of his thoughts. Gwen looked irritated. “This way,” she said, putting them back on track. Putting him back where he needed to be. Kevin was grateful for the distraction.

“I’d follow her anywhere,” he muttered.

Mostly because she seemed to be the only person who knew where they were going.

 

**The Dilemma**  
Kevin liked Gwen, he really did. She was smart, surprisingly fun to be around, and she totally had his back, no questions asked. She was pretty cool.  
When she wasn’t being _totally annoying_. If he heard her mention him asking her out one more fucking time, he was going to punch something. Probably something breakable.

He supposed that went for both cousins, though. Ben was a little brat, sure. He gave Kevin shit all the time, and these days he was way too serious. But he was still the same kid Kevin had been friends with all those years ago, in some respects. He was sarcastic. He loved Sumo Slammers. He loved his grandpa.

“You’re going to have to ask one of us out, you know,” Gwen said, out of nowhere. She always seemed to jar him out of his thoughts. Make him own up to things that he’d rather keep to himself.

“I don’t have to do shit. Maybe I’m perfectly happy with the way things are. Ever think of that?”

“No,” Gwen admitted. “But you seem lonely, so I’m not putting much stock in that answer.”

Kevin scowled. She was too perceptive for his liking. “How the fuck do you know all this stuff?”

“I dunno. Something…feels different about you. Your…aura’s different.” Gwen shrugged. “It’s not just you. As I got older, I just started feeling more in tune with people. I’ve just been thinking it’s a magic thing.”

“Right. Magic.” Kevin rolled his eyes. Then he sighed. “You’re not letting this go, are you?”

“Well…I do like you,” she said, smiling. “And I want to go out with you. So if you’re going to decide you like Ben more, it’s…kind of something I want to know. You know?”

Kevin didn’t answer; just kind of scowled at his dashboard. That seemed to be all the answer Gwen needed, though. She gently squeezed his shoulder.

“Just…think about it, okay?”

Ben hopped into the car a second later, and they didn’t talk about it anymore.

 

**Same Old Song and Dance**  
It feels like they’re ten years old again; Ben’s jumping into things without thinking, things that could be out of his depth. He doesn’t seem to care these days. She almost instantly attributes it to an ego-boost, which he’s been riding on since the Highbreed invasion. It’s Ben, after all, and Ben has always had an ego that was easily petted. Back then, she and Grandpa Max were always worrying, always chasing him around and making sure he didn’t get himself killed.

The only thing that’s different about this scenario is Kevin instead of Grandpa Max, but she supposes Kevin’s own role isn’t that different from what it used to be. He still obsessively watches Ben, like it’s an instinct, only now it’s a good thing. Now he wants Ben safe instead of wanting him dead. His fingers tighten so much that they shake around the controls as he urges Ship faster. Sometimes, she wonders…

It looks like five years ago when Ben finally does realize he was in over his head. When she lectures him it’s like an instinct, too, something she’s always done. Kevin barely says a word, except to fill his old role and lay the blame on Ben, like always. She almost expects it when Ben jumps so easily out of his sadness, mind on something else, and she’s disappointed.

In five years, none of them had really grown up at all.

 

**Gay Jokes**  
“Maybe _straight_ isn’t the way to go…”

“Ben, now is not the time to be making gay jokes.”

 

**Selfish**  
Kevin officially hates _Sumo Slammers_.

It was always kind of a dumb show to begin with, but he never really minded it much as a kid. Not when it was the only thing to occupy him (and, admittedly, Ben’s right—the original was a hell of a lot better than this). But he’s got other things on his mind right now.

Like how Ben hasn’t torn his eyes from this goddamn screen even _once_ since Kevin got there.

Okay, so he’d come in sort of uninvited (not that that was anything new). And maybe he’d kind of asked for this, since he hasn’t actually taken the time to _talk_ to Ben in a while…even if he has his reasons for that.

But, still…not _once_.

He’s not asking for much more than his old friend to be with him again, not asking for the things he really wants, deep-down…just a smile. A quip. _Something_. He wants Ben to turn off the damn television and actually _talk_ to him.

When Ben finally does, it’s about the damn show, and Kevin’s just _done_.

He wonders if Ben really notices when he leaves.

 

**Weakness**  
It is not a coincidence that Vilgax chooses to dig his claws into Kevin instead of Gwen. Family is something that even he would fight to the death for, and there would be no doubt to anyone that Ben Tennyson would fight to keep his family and friends alive. And the fight would just make things difficult. He doesn’t want Ben Tennyson to fight. He wants the hero to _break_.

Hurting Kevin attacks Ben’s secrets, the weaknesses deep inside that Ben protects with only his silence. It is a flimsy defense, easily broken through with a trained eye and intuition. And with one calculated move, Vilgax threatens to hunt down all of Ben’s weaknesses and tear him apart from the inside out.

Starting with his precious _Kevin Levin_.

He has never seen Ben Tennyson give in so quickly.

 

**Perverted Galvan**  
“Kevin, you’ve been upset the whole drive. What’s wrong?”

There is a long, highly awkward pause while Gwen waits for an answer.

“…I’m pretty sure Albedo grabbed my ass at least once.”

She…honestly hadn’t been expecting that.

 

**Helpless**  
It’s not like he hasn’t felt stuck before. There’ve been countless times where he’d messed up, ran out of options, or been thrust into something he wasn’t quite ready for. He’s had plenty of times where he was scared and didn’t know what to do.

But this time is different.

It took him a long time without his grandpa around to realize that he wasn’t a little kid anymore. He couldn’t rely on the adults to come up with the best decisions. He was the one with the powerful weapon on his wrist; he was the one who had to call the shots. He had to have a handle on things. Everyone was counting on him.

No big deal, right? He was a hero. He’d saved the entire universe. He could do it, right?

He left disappointment after disappointment on the backburner, convinced that he shouldn’t have made the mistakes he did. Convinced that if he just did better next time, the problems of the past would all go away. _Just pretend that everything’s normal, Ben, you’ve got to have everything under control, remember?_

He can’t pretend that part of him hadn’t clutched greedily at the excuse to have that damned watch off his wrist.

And he can’t pretend that he doesn’t feel completely helpless without it.

 

**Victory Kiss**  
“Victory kiss my _ass_ , Gwen.”

Gwen gave her cousin a flat look. “What, like you can do better?”

A second later, she wished she hadn’t said that. Ben smirked, grabbed Kevin by the shoulders, and kissed him. _Hard_.

Grandpa Max cleared his throat awkwardly. Gwen smacked her forehead.

Kevin had a goofy look on his face. “This is way better than any twin fantasy.”

Gwen and Ben both gave him dirty looks. Gwen punched him in the shoulder.


	26. Awkward Moments

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set 26.

**Awkward Moments**  
There were many scenarios in which Ben would have really enjoyed seeing Kevin in his underwear, which his vivid imagination was only too happy to provide in this painfully awkward moment. Because if there was ever an inappropriate time to be appreciating a mostly-naked Kevin, it was when he was clustered in a tiny floating mana-bubble with his grandfather and cousin.

He stared at Kevin for a few seconds, not sure what he should say at a time like this.

Kevin finally broke the silence with an awkward, “Uh…good to see you, man;” and Ben wondered if they were possibly thinking the same thing.

 

**Unflattering Picture**  
Ben frowned at the picture on the screen. “Why’d they use that? That is not my best angle.”

“Well,” Kevin said, looking thoughtful, “could be worse.”

Ben raised a brow. “How so?”

“They could’ve gotten that picture I took that one time we—”

Ben turned bright red and threw a pillow at Kevin’s head before he could finish.

 

**Laying Low**  
“Not that I mind hiding you out for a while,” Julie said. “But…why aren’t you staying with Kevin?”

Ben blinked at her, trying to look innocent. “Because…you’re my girlfriend?”

Julie gave him a look that said, _Ben Tennyson I am so not impressed with you_. “You still haven’t told him.”

“That’s a negative.”

“Why not?”

Ben squirmed a little. “Well, it…I don’t know…telling him that you and I broke up just to get an ‘in’ with him seems…kind of low. And if he figures it out, he’ll think I’m on the rebound.”

Julie sighed in exasperation. “But you’re _not_ on the rebound, Ben. If he figures out you like him, then there’s no trouble being honest, is there?”

Ben hesitated, squirming again. “Come on, I’ve just been outed as a hero, Julie. I don’t want to come out as gay on the same day.” As he said it, it seemed to fully sink in, and he suddenly looked a little sick. “Oh my god, the press would go _nuts_ …”

Julie sighed again, and relented. “Okay, fair enough. But as your friend, I am not about to let you run from this forever, got it?”

Ben smiled about a million watts and kissed her on the cheek. “Thanks, Julie.”

Julie grumbled. “If you weren’t so cute…”

 

**Threat or Menace?**  
“Has anyone bothered to ask how many people actually answered that poll?”

The question comes almost out of nowhere, and it stops everyone in their tracks. Ben stares blankly at Kevin, smoothie straw hanging from his mouth, while the other boy glares at the table.

“Come again?” Gwen asked, looking just as confused as Ben.

“That whole ‘threat or menace’ thing,” Kevin explained. “That’s only two options, and they both suck.”

“Yeah, I know.” Ben rolled his eyes and continued slurping away. “Apparently 74% of adult viewers think I’m a threat. So what’s your point?”

“My _point_ is, do we even know how many people _in town_ actually think that way?”

“Oh, I see.” Gwen’s face lit up with genuine interest. “The only options were negative, so obviously only the people who think badly of Ben would have voted. I didn’t think of that.” She smiled at Ben. “See? There are probably lots of people who like you.”

“Yeah, sure, that,” Kevin said, brushing her off. “More importantly, there are lots of people we can _talk_ to about their opinion, if you know what I mean.”

Both cousins rolled their eyes.

Ben snorted. “And Harangue says _I’m_ the menace.”

 

**A Time and Place for Everything**  
“You know, I used to think you guys only hung out with me because I was the one who could drive.” He says it jokingly, though he’s being honest. He doesn’t handle “honest” and “serious” very well at the same time. Especially when it comes to his feelings, which he’s honestly tried to keep to himself. At least the ones concerning Ben.

He doesn’t want to hope right now. It’s not the time, or the place for it, really. He doesn’t want to think it’s significant that Ben lowers his eyes when he responds, “Maybe at first…” He doesn’t want to let himself believe that it’s out of shyness. Not right now.

It’s just not the time.

 

**Too Obvious**  
“So, um…”

Gwen stopped at Jimmy’s hesitant voice. When she turned around, she caught him peering out the door. He was checking for Ben and Kevin. Whatever he wanted to say was for her ears only.

She shut the door.

“Something you wanted to ask me, Jimmy?”

“I wasn’t sure if I should say this out loud, in case I was wrong.” Jimmy fidgeted in his seat. “Um…Kevin… _likes_ Mister Tennyson…doesn’t he?”

Gwen was surprised at first, but then she let out a sigh. “So it’s obvious even to ten-year-olds. Lovely.”

“Oh. So I was right.” Jimmy paused, taking in the rest of her response. “…it’s a secret?”

“Well, Ben doesn’t know, at least.” Gwen shook her head. “Which I guess is just how Kevin likes it.”

Jimmy fidgeted again, looking embarrassed. “I won’t tell anyone, then. I don’t wanna cause any more trouble than I already have…”

“Probably a good idea.” Nobody wanted a repeat of what had happened earlier. Now that Gwen thought about it, Kevin’s little aggressive display—for Ben’s sake, too—was probably what gave him away.

Unnerved by the sudden silence, Jimmy shyly interjects Gwen’s thoughts with, “I don’t think they’d make a bad couple, you know.”

Gwen had to smile at that. “I feel the same way.”

 

**Off in Their Own World**  
 _They’re like a couple of kids,_ Gwen thinks, when the two of them speed off in the Rustbucket, whooping and hollering like they’re the Dukes of Hazard. She can picture Ben playing with all the buttons until Kevin gets mad enough to tell him to quit it, Kevin showing off all the new gadgets while Ben looks on with the biggest grin on his face (and, admittedly, it kind of brings a smile to hers).

She remembers the time when they vanished for a whole weekend, and came back babbling excitedly about space diners and some alien sport they found out about and “oh, man, one of the engines wouldn’t shut off and we thought we were gonna get blown out of the galaxy at one point, but damn, it was fun.” She remembers scolding them while trying not to smile from the utter _joy_ they were exuding.

She’d failed at that, but Kevin and Ben were so wrapped up in their own little world that they didn’t even notice.

 

**Phone Call**  
“Hey, don’t I get a phone call?!”

“If you get your phone call, do I get a conjugal visit?”

“Shut up, Kevin.”

 

**For Me to Know**  
“…so, really, out of the three of me, I just left the wrong one with you. I’m sorry.”

It was a lame apology, and Ben knew it. And not just because Julie and Gwen were giving him the _Are you an idiot?_ look and telling him that that wasn’t the issue. It was a terrible excuse, but they let him off the hook anyway.

Kevin did not.

“ _Sensitive_ Ben? You’re telling me you left me with _Sensitive_ Ben?” The scowl on Kevin’s face was almost a physical anomaly. “Bullshit. I know _Sensitive_ Ben. _Sensitive_ Ben cries during the opening credits of _Old Yeller_. _Sensitive_ Ben hates it when I call him ‘pipsqueak’ or ‘squirt.’ _Sensitive_ Ben sure as fucking hell doesn’t keep pestering me with creepy-ass questions about _feelings_ for _three hours_!”

Ben knew he should have said something smart there, but the only reply that would come was a very weak, “So you noticed that, huh?”

“That’s all you have to say to me?” Kevin paused, his scowl a bit softer, but still present. “So who the hell did you leave me with, huh? Some sort of evil, mind-torturing Ben or what?”

“That is an excellent question,” Ben said, “and I can only answer it one way.”

“Oh, yeah?” Kevin raised a brow. “What’s that?”

Smirking, Ben replied, “That’s for me to know, and for you to find out.”

 

**Girlfriend Advice**  
He doesn’t think about the statement, said so jokingly and casually, until roughly an hour later. By then, Kevin’s found more food and has to question the curious look on Ben’s face through a mouthful of corn dog.

“What?”

“Why would that be weird?” Ben asks.

“Why would what be weird?” Kevin asks in return, swallowing his food.

“Asking you for girlfriend advice.”

Kevin blinks. “You’re…you’re kiddin’ me, right?”

“Um…no? You’re dating Gwen, right? Why would it be weird?”

“I’m not dating Gwen, though,” Kevin answers, and when Ben opens his mouth to question it, he continues, “I still like you, remember? D’you seriously think Gwen’s gonna date somebody that likes someone else?”

It takes a few seconds for that to sink in. By the time it does, Ben’s face is so hot that Kevin probably could’ve reheated his corn dog on it. All he musters in response is a very soft, “Oh.”

“Yeah. We done now?”

Slowly, Ben nods and Kevin walks away. They don’t talk about it again.


	27. The Control-Freak

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set 27.

**The Control-Freak**  
“I dunno why you bother,” Kevin says after they’re out of Ben’s hearing distance. “Why does it matter so much to you whether their relationship runs into the ground?”

“Because Julie is my friend,” Gwen replies matter-of-factly.

“So tell her to dump his ass,” Kevin says, just as bluntly.

Gwen scoffs. “You’d like that, wouldn’t you?”

Kevin wonders for a moment if it’s too dangerous to answer that, decides yes, and then does so anyway. “Yes. Yes I would.” It takes another moment for something else to dawn on him. “…you wouldn’t, though, would you?”

Gwen stops. “It’s not like that, Kevin.” She sighs. “It’s…we didn’t work out, and…I just don’t want the same thing to happen to them.” She looks at Kevin, and his disapproving look hasn’t gone away. “I should just butt out, shouldn’t I?”

“Yeah. Yeah you should. Besides,” he adds, determined to inject a little humor into the situation, “how’m I supposed to make a move on him if he’s still dating Julie?”

In spite of herself, Gwen smiles. Just a bit. “Kevin Ethan Levin, you are just…”

 

**“Sensitive” Ben**  
He hated all of them.

Not that he would ever voice this out loud…being Ben Tennyson came with a few complications that prevented that, even if he was only one piece of the puzzle. And Ben Tennyson was a public figure…he had to be nice.

“You’re a smart guy. I don’t think you give yourself enough credit for that.” _Haha, hell no, you’re stupid. Check your grades sometime._

“I think you’re kind of a dope.”

_That makes you a dope, too, asshole._

He put his counterparts out of his mind for the moment—he wasn’t terribly fond of them. He wasn’t overly fond of a lot of things. Including himself. What was so great about him, anyway? Sometimes he wished he could just show everybody what a total loser he was and they would all just…go away.

Well…maybe he _could_.

If he could get his nerdy side out of the way for a day…if his arrogant self stayed here with Julie…

“She’s been _so_ nice to us, after all…”

And then, maybe, if _he_ screwed everything up with Kevin…maybe he could drive everyone away before he and his other selves joined again. Maybe he could be all alone by the time everything was done.

It would be _perfect_.

 

**Bad Night**  
Usually, Kevin would have loved this, the chance to spend an entire evening with Ben. And he’d been pretty happy about it when Ben first suggested it, even if the hero _had_ been acting a little weird. He was still kind of happy about it while he was driving up to the museum, even if Ben was staring at him the whole time (it was kind of creepy, sure, but still).

But this… _this_ was probably going to kill him.

Why was Ben dredging up all their past problems? Their conflicts? Every time Kevin was the slightest bit moody about something? Why? Why? _Why?_

“…and of course, we haven’t even _begun_ to unpack the team’s interpersonal dynamics…”

Oh, God, he was doing this on purpose, wasn’t he? That innocent baby-deer look was just a ruse, a trick to make Kevin think he actually _meant_ this touchy-feely junk. And talking about Gwen?

_What are you punishing me for? Whatever I did, I’m sorry; I’ll never do it again!_

But he couldn’t say it out loud—he was afraid Ben would come at him with something like, “What do you mean, Kevin? I’m just trying to be sensitive to your feelings.” And then the torture would resume.

If he survived this somehow, he was totally going to get payback.

 

**Paparazzi**  
There’s a question they ask surprisingly often, and Kevin’s starting to get a little suspicious. Everywhere he goes (well, everywhere Ben goes), it’s the same question.

“Is it true you’re dating Jennifer Nocturne?”

“What’s the nature of your relationship with Jennifer Nocturne?”

“Are you and Ms. Nocturne an item?”

He has no idea where it’s coming from, one; and two, Ben has never once answered it, in the negative or otherwise. When Kevin asks…

“I don’t know who Jennifer Nocturne is,” Ben tells him. “Do they really ask me that all the time?”

“Do you _really_ not pay attention when people ask you questions?”

“I’m mostly distracted by the camera flashes.”

Kevin stares blankly at him. “…are you serious right now?”

“Maybe.” Ben smiles. “Maybe not. Maybe you’ll never know. And maybe I like it that way.”

Ben leaves, and it isn’t until later that Kevin realizes he’d forgotten all about the paparazzi and their stupid questions.

 

**Midnight Watch**  
They’ve each forgone sleep, staying awake in order to keep watch over their families. So far, Grandpa Max said it was just Ben’s parents these groups were targeting, but it never hurt to be safe. Kevin, especially, was worried about his mom, who he knew had already had more to worry about than she ever needed to. She’d never admit it, but she’d been a little on edge since he came home. Not that he blamed her.

He’s just jerked himself awake for the third time when his cell phone vibrates in his pocket. He looks at the number, smiles, and answers it.

“Hey, Benji. Late night?”

_“Of course. Same as you. Everything okay over there?”_

Kevin sighs and leans back on the couch, looking at the moonlight casting itself on his ceiling. “Yeah. Fine. Freaked out one of my neighbors about an hour ago, though, sittin’ here in the dark and all.”

There’s a snort of laughter through the phone. _“Good job, Kevin. Hope nobody calls the cops.”_

“Just what I’d need.” Kevin lets out a groan, but it’s laced with a laugh. He can’t tell if that’s because he’s tired or because of the voice over the phone. Calm, casual, in the face of just about anything. He wonders how Ben does it. “How’re you holdin’ up?” he asks, his voice almost a whisper.

_“Doing okay. Just bored. Though that means that nobody’s tried attacking the house, so I’m counting that as a good thing.”_ He breathes out another laugh and then adds, _“Plus I’m really tired.”_

“Same.” A pause. “Glad you called.”

There’s another pause, like Ben doesn’t know what to say. Kevin doesn’t really feel like taking back what he said, though; he’s too tired for that. So he lets the silence go on sitting there until Ben says, _“Aww, shucks. Missed me?”_

Ben’s voice is shaking, just slightly, but it’s the effect Kevin wanted. It’s enough. He smirks. “Yeah. I did.”

They talk long into the night, and it helps take Kevin’s mind off things.

 

**The Indefinable**  
Even through a pounding headache, Gwen can hear it. What it is, she doesn’t know how to describe it…but she knows when she hears it. It’s like an entity all its own; it’s in the room with them all the time, but only awake during certain moments. Moments when those two—Ben and Kevin—connect.

It’s there, hanging in the air as they face off, Ben’s aura still burning with anger over his mother’s kidnapping while Kevin’s is strangely cool, making a balance between them. Ben’s mood flips, like a switch, and his own aura is cooled, sedated. He apologizes to her. Kevin backs off. And _it_ —whatever it is—settles down, going back to sleep until another time.

She keeps listening for it, waiting for it to awaken again, and hopes that one day she’ll be able to figure out what it is.

 

**Bonus Content**  
“Your own video game, huh? Is there gonna be any bonus content?”

Ben gave Kevin a suspicious look. “Bonus content? Like what?”

Kevin grinned almost lewdly, completely justifying said suspicious look. “Like a level where you take your shirt off.”

Ben sighed. “No, Kevin, I don’t think there’s a level like that.”

“Huh.” Kevin sipped at a soda, and then said seriously, “I think I should complain.”

Ben just stared at him.

 

**Like You Would Treat a Woman**  
Though Kevin backpedaled almost immediately after he’d said it, there was no way he could really take it back. The proof of that was the incredulous look on Gwen’s face.

She glared at him for several moments, making him fear for his life a little bit before she finally spoke.

“I think I would know better than you how to treat a woman.”

 

**Ben’s Balls**  
“Uh…one of my balls fell off.”

“Then we’re gonna have a real problem later on in the bedroom.”

 

**Ben Cooties**  
Normally, Gwen would agree with the sentiment—goodness knows where Ben has been—but in this case, she would say that Kevin is complaining for nothing. The straw came out of the trash, and he’s worried about “Ben cooties”?

Besides, with what they’d get up to with a little alone time…well, it just seems ridiculous for him to worry about anything less.


End file.
